ADVICE RATING |
 5.00 (Highly recommend) from 12 votes (112 Visits) |
|
|
Code Words-Safeguarding Your Child From Strangers |
 |
by DCMerkle  (April 18th) (rank 416th) |
|
When I was a child, I remember my parents telling me that I was never to talk to strangers. If someone stopped me on the street, asked me to come up to their car or offer me candy, I was never to go near them. I was to yell and 
run the opposite way. Things have changed since then. They have gotten worse.
My children were taught all those same things, but I added code words to the mix. There are times when you can't pick up your children after school or from a activity that your children may be at. You could run into car trouble or worse, you may be in the emergency room at a hospital. For those situations you may have to ask a friend or neighbor to pick up your children. Your children may know them, but it's always a good thing to have your children ask for the code word if someone other than you are there to get them.
For example, let's say that you have the flu and there's no way you can drag yourself from the bed. You call a neighbor and ask them to pick up your children from after school. You tell your neighbor what the code word is to ask the child. For us it was paintbrush. Your child sees the neighbor and the neighbor says, "Hi, I'm here to take you home because mommy is sick." The child knows that the word is paintbrush and asks the neighbor for the code word before going with them. The neighbor gives the code word and then the child knows that it's okay to go with the neighbor.
The code word is changed on a daily basis. Pick words that are unique to you and your family only. It's because the word is changed on a daily basis that the child knows that mom did speak with the neighbor on that day. It's a shame that sometimes you can't trust even your neighbors, but that is the way of the world currently. Changing the code word on a daily basis keeps your child safe, because if the same code word is used, it can be used on the child at anytime. Use the code word even if you ask a relative to pick up your child. It's not that you don't trust your relative, but it's instilling in the child the need to be safe and stay safe.
DCMerkle
