A child who goes missing is every parent's nightmare. Children are vulnerable - it's up to parents and other responsible, caring adults to keep them safe, and to protect them from harm. How can we do this? Perhaps the best defense we have going for us is prevention. According to The National Alert Registry, there are some basic rules parents can follow to help us keep our children safe.
1. Teach children key information: Help them to learn their full name, address, phone number (with area code), parents' names, and office phone numbers.
2. Teach children who is safe: Children should be taught at an early age which strangers are okay to ask for help when they are lost or frightened. Good examples include, a mother with children, a counter clerk in a store, or a uniformed police officer.
3. Know where your child is going: Children should always inform you before they go anywhere - even if it is just next door. Ask questions - who, what, when, where, and why, and let your kids know these questions are important.
4. Teach children about the buddy system: Never let your young children go anywhere alone. Teach them to do activities with a friend, and emphasize the issue of safety in numbers.
5. Teach your kids not to be lured in: Explain that your children shouldn't go near cars to answer questions or give directions, or to accept rides. Teach them not to be lured by other adults, even if they know them.
6. Develop a password system: Children can be very trusting of adults, especially adults they are familiar with. Work out a password with your child ahead of time that a "safe" adult would know in case of any emergency, and make sure your child doesn't go with an adult who doesn't have this password. Make the password an easy word for your child to remember, but at the same time, not an easy word for a stranger to guess.
7. Reinforce safety skills: Seize opportunities to reinforce safety skills. If an incident occurs in your community, speak frankly about it with your child -- seek professional help if necessary, but take the opportunity to reinforce safety rules and skills that can protect your child from danger.
8. Keep an up-to-date record of your child: Maintain current medical and physical information, and a photograph of your child. Make a written record of an exact description including height, weight, color of eyes, hair, and any other identifying characteristics. In case of an emergency, it is imperative that you have something current that can be given to authorities.
9. Know how to report your missing child. As you are aware, time is a critical factor in abduction cases. When you can't find your child, immediately call your local law enforcement agency. After reporting your child missing, call the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST.
10. Make it your business to be informed. As a parent, you should be aware of where child offenders live around your neighborhood and your local schools.
Though this is a difficult subject for all of us to ponder, acknowledgement of the dangers that exist and an awareness of how to promote child safety will enhance our ability to provide a safer and more child-friendly environment for our children.
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