NHPD Safety Tips for Back to School Safety
Traveling to and from School
¨ Plan a walking route to school or the bus stop. Choose the most direct way with the fewest street crossings and, if possible, with intersections that have crossing guards.
¨ Walk the route with your child beforehand. Tell him or her to stay away from parks, vacant lots, fields and other places where there aren’t many people around.
¨ Teach your child never to talk to strangers or accept rides or gifts from strangers. Remember, a stranger is anyone you or your children don’t know well or don’t trust.
¨ Make sure your child walks to and from school with a sibling, friend, or neighbor.
¨ Teach your kids — whether walking, biking, or riding the bus to school — to obey all traffic signals, signs and traffic officers. Remind them to be extra careful in bad weather.
¨ If your child bikes to school make sure he wears a helmet that meets one of the safety standards (U.S. CPSC, Snell, ANSI, ASTM, or Canadian). Research indicates that a helmet can reduce the risk of head injury by up to 85 percent.
¨ Be sure that your child knows his or her home phone number and address, your work number, the number of another trusted adult and how to call 911 for emergencies.
¨ Avoid any drawstrings on the hood or around the neck of jackets and sweatshirts. Drawstrings at the waist or bottom of jackets should extend no more than three inches long to prevent catching in car and school bus doors or getting caught on playground equipment.
Bullying
¨ Make sure you discuss bullying with your child and that he or she knows to report it to you or a teacher.
¨ Notify Police or school administrators if you suspect your child is being bullied.
Strangers
¨ Avoid talking to strangers. Teach your children to get distance between themselves and anyone who tries to approach or make contact with them.
¨ If a stranger does approach your child, make sure they know to immediately report the incident to you or a teacher.
¨ Teach your children to never get into a vehicle with anyone, even if they know them, without your permission.
School Resource Officers
¨ Have your child introduce themselves to the SRO
Social Media
¨ Monitor your child’s social media or texting interactions so you can identify problems before they get out of hand.
¨ Disable Location-based services. Location-based services can be one of the most dangerous features provided by social networking sites. It exposes the profile user’s location and whereabouts. The service also has a feature that allows users to tag who they are with at any given time. While it can be fun to share your location with friends and family, it can also increase your vulnerability, potentially opening you up to being a crime victim.
Predators can use this tool to track your movements and determine when you are alone or when you are not at home.
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