Stranger Danger

Shortly after Maia and I began our journey into the wonderful world of sex education (see here), it also came to my attention that it was probably high time to have the other BIG talk...you know, the one about staying safe around strangers. Make no mistake, it is our responsibility as parents to have some form of this talk with our preschoolers. The question is, however, just how does one go about it without scaring the shit out of your kids? And how on earth does one help kids to be more street savvy without completely squashing their need to explore the world and become more independent minded?

Let's stop for a moment and think about when we were kids. Some of us grew up in the 70s...some of us in the 80s....but regardless of the time period, chances are you did at least a few of these things as a child:
- came home to an empty house after school (while in grade school, no less), prepped yourself a snack, called mom to say you were home, and watched TV until a parent arrived from work
- rode your bike solo around your neighborhood and even up to a local store to buy candy
- spent hours exploring several acres of a wooded area behind or near your house with only a dog or two for company
- went trick or treating with a group of friends and without a single adult along to "ensure safety"
- waited, alone, at a school bus stop for at least 15 minutes every morning after your parents had already driven off to work
- sat in the car with the windows down while mom or dad ran into a store to pick up some groceries
- walked to school by yourself
- walked several blocks to a friend's house (or biked there) by yourself

Any of this sound familiar? Now, picture your own child at age seven or eight or nine. How comfortable would you feel allowing them to do the same? Maybe most of you feel totally fine with all of the above...or maybe not. But now is the time to really start thinking about your personal comfort zone when it comes to granting your child more independence...and doing what you can to educate yourself and your kids about how to stay safe.

Per usual, I have two books to recommend. One of them is probably not unfamiliar to some of you, Free-Range Kids: Giving Our Kids the Freedom We had Without Going Nuts with Worry by Lenore Skenazy. The other may not be as familiar, Protecting the Gift: Keeping Children and Teenagers Safe (and Parents Sane) by Gavin De Becker. Both books approach the same topic from differing perspectives and both books have the same goal in mind: to help parents, and kids, trust and act on their instincts while still managing to allow children to enjoy their childhood and all the freedoms that come along with it.

Enjoy!