Parents – Are you Defining the Stranger Danger Line

As a parent, your number one priority is the care and protection of your child.

One of the challenges parents face is teaching your child to make their way in the world with confidence but also with a reasonable measure of caution. Parents need to warn their child of potential threats without making them anxious or fearful whenever they step out the door.

One of the safety lessons parents need to teach their child at a young age is how to deal with strangers. Situations will arise when your child might need to ask for help (for example, if they get lost in a mall) and need to interact with strangers. Older children might encounter a stranger at a park or other public place.

Here are some simple tips you can give your child to keep them safe:

1. Tell your child if he or she is lost, to look for someone in uniform like a police officer. If they are in a store, approach an employee for help. If they are in a crowd, tell them to look for grandparents or parents with small children.
2. If the child is lost in a store, tell them they should never leave the store or stand at the entrance.
3. If your child is alone and approached by a stranger offering them candy or toys, the child should simply say “no!” and walk away immediately. The same is true if a stranger asks for your child’s help or asks them to get in the stranger’s car.
4. If parents need other adults to give their child a ride or pick them up somewhere, make up a code word that only you, your child, and that trusted adult know.
5. Teach your child that appearances are less important than how a person acts. Even if someone seems friendly, if the child gets a funny feeling or the stranger asks something inappropriate, the child needs to walk away and tell a trusted adult.
6. If your older child is home alone, make sure they always keep the doors locked and that they never tell anyone they are home alone. Having a security system which allows you to view when your child comes home can be a useful tool. Parents can simply get a notification when the child disarms the system. The child should also know how to rearm the system in occupied mode once inside the home. If parents see a notification that the front door is opened, using an app on their phone, they can also view the cameras to see why the door was opened.

Teaching children these common sense tips for their safety and protection will give parents more peace of mind.