Personal Safety and Self Defense for children, teens and adults

Tips for Summer Safety

Summer is a time of change for many families. End of school activities, vacations, camp, overnight visits, jobs, outings with family and friends, or just having more “home alone” time give young people important opportunities to have fun and to grow. Here are a few simple steps parents and other caring adults can follow to help their children stay safe while having fun and learning during these adventures.

Make sure everybody knows the plan. Prevent confusion and possible problems by reviewing the plan for what is going to happen every day, so each person involved with your child is on the same page about acceptable activities, what the rules are, what changes are okay, and who is supervising his or her care.

Teach children to Check First before they change their plan. Children are safest when their adults know WHAT they are doing, WHO they are with, and WHERE they are going. As soon as your child is old enough to understand, encourage the habit of asking you directly each time before anyone changes her or his plan.

Teach children how to set respectful strong boundaries with people they know. Most safety problems happen with people that children know and trust. Children need to be able to speak up with their friends, with their trusted adults, and with people in positions of authority such as teachers, youth group leaders, or doctors. They need to know how to stop unwanted or unsafe touch, teasing, or games and to be persistent if pressured.

Make sure that children know how to get help everywhere they go. Make a list of everywhere your child is likely to go, of any safety problems that might come up, and of how he or she can get help if needed. Any Getting Help plan that depends on a cell phone needs a backup plan, just in case. Tell children that the rules are different if they are having the kind of emergency where they cannot check first because they might need to get help from rangers, police officers, storekeepers, fire fighters, women with children, or other strangers.

Encourage children to tell you about their problems and their fears. A core KIDPOWER principle is that problems should not be secrets. Even if their worries sound silly or trivial, you want children to get into the habit of talking with their trusted adults and to believe that they will be listened to with respect and love.  Tell your child that you want to know anytime she or he has a problem, even if you seem very busy. Ask occasionally, “Is there anything you’ve been wondering or worrying about that you haven't told me?"

Teach children about stranger awareness. Tell children that most people are good, and that this means that most strangers are good, because a stranger is just someone you don't know. Their stranger safety plan should be to Move Away and Check First with their trusted adults if a stranger approaches them when they are on their own.  Have children practice Checking First before they open the door to someone they don't know well, before they talk with a stranger, before they let a stranger get close to them, and before they take anything from a stranger, even their own things. If they are independent enough to be out on their own without an adult to check first with, teach children to Think First about whether or not it is safe to let someone they don't know come close to them, and teach them not to give personal information to strangers.

Give children the chance to practice personal safety skills in ways appropriate for their ages and life situations. Young people learn more by doing than by being told what to do. They are safest when they have successfully practiced how to protect themselves if someone tries to harm them or to get them to do something that is dangerous. Please explore our website for our articles, newsletter, educational publications, and services, as well as for information on how to choose an effective self-defense program.

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