Although this isn't my favorite topic,
I think it's one that needs to be addressed.
Stranger Danger and Back to School Safety
are the topic for today's
Safety and Preparedness Family Home Evening.
Opening Prayer:
Scripture:
"Yea, a man whose heart did swell with thanksgiving to his God,
for the many privileges and blessings which he bestowed
upon his people; a man who did labor exceedingly for the
welfare and safety of his people."
Alma 48: 12
Song:
"Teach Me to Walk in the Light"
Children's Songbook Page 177
The Rules and The Reason:
What to Do:
If a stranger asks you to go for a walk or get in a car,
shout NO! and run away.
If a stranger offers you money or presents,
shout NO! and run away.
Where should you run?
Don't run off by yourself or try to hide in a place
where there are no people.
Run to a place where there are lots of people.
Run into a restaurant or a gas station.
Run to the home of someone you know well.
Make a lot of noise.
A bad stranger will not want to see him or her.
Making a lot of noise is good.
Lesson:
Who is a stranger?
A stranger is someone you do not know well.
You have met many strangers already.
Some have become friends.
There are strangers in your neighborhood, in stores,
and at school.
Even people you see often, but don't really know,
are strangers, like the mail carrier, the school bus driver,
and the clerk at the store.
Most strangers are nice people.
Some strangers are not good people.
They may want to hurt a child or take him or her away
from his or her parents.
They may want to touch a child in ways that are not proper.
Strangers don't become friends just by acting
friendly for a few minutes.
Do you know the person's name?
Where he or she lives?
Do your parents know that person?
Do they trust that person?
Bad people do not always look mean or bad.
They can seem to be friendly.
They can be men or women, young or old.
They can be dressed in grubby old clothes or
brand-new fancy ones.
Remember the story of the Little Red Riding Hood?
The wolf pretended to be kind and friendly, but he was
really mean. He wanted to hurt Little Red Riding Hood.
The Rules and The Reason:
What to Do:
If a stranger tries to stop you and asks questions
when you are alone or with friends, do NOT answer.
Leave the area immediately.
If you are in a public building, go where there are other people.
If you are outside, go to a place where there are people.
Always tell your parents, teachers, a police officer,
or someone you trust
what happened as soon as possible.
Remember:
When you are with your parents and a stranger says,
"Hi, how are you" it's OK to answer.
When you are in the checkout line at a grocery store
with your parents or an adult and the cashier says,
"What a pretty blouse you have on," or
"That's a neat cap," it's OK to answer politely
because you are with your parents.
Here are a few role play aactivities you can do as a family:
Role Play:
A young man wearing jeans and a football jersey stops you
and asks you questions, like:
What is your name?
Where do you live?
He looks a lot like your favorite football player.
Is he a stranger?
What should you do?
Answer:
He is a stranger.
Do not answer any questions about yourself.
Get away from him fast.
Go to a place where there are other people.
Role Play:
You and your best friend are walking to the park.
A woman asks you if the two of you would like to go with her
to see a movie.
She says when will buy popcorn and soda for you both.
Is she a stranger?
What should you do?
Answer:
She is a stranger.
Shout NO! Do not go ANYWHERE with her,
even though you are with a friend.
Leave the area immediately.
Go to a place where there are other people.
Tell an adult what happened.
Never go anywhere with a stranger no matter what he or she
says or offers you.
Role Play:
A man who looks a lot like your grandfather tells you he is lost.
He asks you to walk with him to the corner of
Second and Maple Street, which is a few blocks away.
Is he a stranger?
Answer:
He is a stranger. Do not go ANYWHERE with him.
If there are other people around, you could ask someone else to help
the man. If no one else is around, stay away from the man.
Tell him you are sorry, but your aren't allowed to do that.
Most adults ask other adults for help, not children.
Role Play:
A lady stops you and says,
"Will you come with me and help me find my dog?
I will give you $10.00. I know my poor little dog is so scared."
She starts to cry.
Is she a stranger?
Answer:
She is a stranger. You should not go ANYWHERE with her.
If other people are around, ask them to help her.
This lady is not acting right.
Most adults will not offer money to children.
They will ask other adults to help.
Role Play:
A man calls out from an alley and asks for your help.
He looks like he is bleeding.
Is he a stranger?
Answer:
He is a stranger. Do not go close to him.
He may be pretending.
Call loudly for help. Get another adult to help.
Use the nearest telephone and call the emergency number.
Role Play:
A young man about 20 years old driving a fancy red convertible
stops his car in front of your house and asks you for directions.
Is he a stranger?
Answer:
He is a stranger.
Don't go near the car.
Usually adults ask other adults for directions, not children.
Role Play:
You are shopping with your mother at a large department store.
You wander off to the toy aisle. A man in a store uniform comes
up to you and says, "Hurry, your mom fell and broke her leg.
The ambulance took her to the hospital. I'll take you there."
Is he a stranger?
Answer:
He is a stranger. Do not go with him.
How would he know she was your mother?
If she really did have a broken leg, someone would make an
announcement for you to come to the front desk.
Go to the front desk and find out
if anything really did happen to your mother.
It's best if you stay with your parents when shopping.
If you do wander off alone, do not leave the store or go
somewhere else in the store with a stranger.
Activity:
Take the route your children will take on their way to school.
Show them how to safely cross the road and where to cross.
If they ride the bus, remind them of the rules that will keep them safe.
Closing Prayer:
Here's the PDF for the Lesson and Treat:
Don't Forget to add to your FHE Journal!
Here's the Treat:
Here's the Recipe:
2/3 cup Boiling Water
1 Package (4-serving size) Jell-O Strawberry Flavored Gelatin
Ice Cubes
1/2 cup Cold Water
1 Tub (8-ounces) Cool Whip Topping, Thawed
1 Honey Maid Graham Pie Crust (6-ounces)
Instructions:
Stir boiling water into dry gelatin mix in large bowl at least 2 minutes
until completely dissolved.
Add enough ice to cold water to measure 1 cup.
Add to gelatin; stir until slightly thickened.
Remove any un-melted ice.
Add whipped topping; stir with wire whisk until well blended.
Refrigerate 15 to 20 minutes or until mixture is thick enough to mound.
Spoon into crust.
Refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight until firm.
Fast, Easy . . . and Super Good!
I'd like to add something to this subject- something I teach is that a stranger can be someone you do know. I define a stranger as a bad person, someone who wants to hurt you. I also teach kids that even if a parent or an adult tells them they can go with someone, if the child doesn't feel safe to do so, they don't have to. They have a voice and a choice. (radkids.org)
ReplyDeleteThanks Brigitte!
ReplyDeleteThis is a great idea for FHE, especially this time of year. Thank you for generously sharing your time and talent!
ReplyDeleteI always remind my boys that no body older then them needs their help. If someone older then them, like teenagers, tell them they need help then I tell my kids to tell them that they will get their mom or dad and to come inside. I also remind them when they go to birthday parties and visit friends houses that they never should be alone with anyone but the child they are visiting. That there is no reason they should be alone with one of their parents or a sibling. They should always stay with their friends. I know that some abuse can occur from their friends'older siblings or from the older siblings friends and I want to make sure that they know to be aware. Just thought I would share that, if it makes any sense. :)
ReplyDeleteGreat advice, and an even better reminder for parents and children.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing!
Trish
a few more suggestions: is if a stranger stops in his/her car and asks for the child to come closer the child should move away from the vehicle. and should someone grab them yell fire very loud most people hear that and not help help or this is not my mom or dad....
ReplyDeleteThank you so much!!! I don't know just how I came across your blog, but this was the perfect FHE for our family tonight. We just moved into a new home in a new neighborhood and our four year-old loves to wander. The pictures, stories, rules and reasons were wonderful to help our kids understand stranger danger, but also to be "prepared not scared". Thanks again!
ReplyDeleteThank you for the beautiful FHE lesson. This isn't my favorite topic either but I agree it needs to be talked about again and again. I have a 6 yr old who is ultra friendly and even though we've talk about strangers I'm afraid she would go with a stranger who seemed nice, especially if they had a dog with them. I'm down in Orem and it would be hard to make it up to Bountiful -- is there any way I can be contacted? I'd really like to be able to print this off. Thank you!!!
ReplyDeleteOops, I just noticed the link for the PDF. Thank you!! I'm definitely going to print this off and add it to my FHE file!!!
ReplyDeleteAsay Family,
ReplyDeleteThere is a PDF file in pink on the post. Click on that and it should open to a page with a code. Click on the code and the FHE lesson should come up for you to print.
Let me know if it doesn't work and I'll email it to you directly.
Hope that helps!
Trish
Thanks for sharing such wonderful ideas on your blog-so appreciated!
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting this... I saw it on Sugardoodle on Monday and thought instantly to share this for FHE that night. My children, 5 yrs and 3 yrs loved it and had many questions that we were able to answer with the role playing. Something that we stressed with them was the importance of finding an adult to help or a mother with children if they were ever in this type of situation. Just yesterday while in the park my 5 yr old wandered away and became lost. While I was frantically looking for him, he remembered what we had talked about in FHE the night before and he found a family with kids and asked the Mom and Dad for help. It was the most frightening 15 minutes of my life, but we were tearfully reunited, due to the quick thinking of my son and the kindess of this family. I know that he was not in a stranger danger situation but am Thankful for your FHE lesson regardless because it helped us talk about other situations that could happen as well. Thank you! Angi
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad to hear that everything turned out alright. I just had that moment in Costco and it scared me to death. Thankfully, it turned out with a very similar ending. (Although I think I aged a few years and added about 50 new gray hairs!)
ReplyDeleteTrish
Thank you for preparing this lesson. I know you posted almost a year ago, but the story of the poor little boy, Leiby Kletzky in Brooklyn made me realize that I need to revisit this subject with my children. I am going to use your lesson for Family Home Evening this week. Thank you thank you!
ReplyDeletei love this lesson and came across it thought with school started it would be great. i am have trouble opening the PDF file it keeps giving me an error. Is there another way i can get a copy downloaded?
ReplyDeleteWonderful lesson! Thank you! We have a family "password". If someone other than me or my husband has to pick the children up for whatever reason, they must know the password. Even if they know the family member or friend, they always ask, "whats the password" before leaving with them.That way if a stranger ever comes up and says they were supposed to pick them up/take them somewhere and they don't know the password-they know to run to the nearest adult. We have role played different situations and so far it has been successful.
ReplyDelete