PRESS:

ABC News – New York

Posted By:

NEW YORK (WABC) — A lot of us grew up with, or taught our kids, the idea of “stranger danger”, but as times change so does the way kids should be taught about safety.

Two moms have launched an updated way to talk to children about how to stay safe.

It’s a tough topic to teach because don’t want to scare your child but you want them to be prepared.

If they get lost, if someone’s hurting them.

We’ve all been told as kids “Don’t talk to strangers”, but nearly 80% of all abducted children in the U.S. are kidnapped by a family member.

And 90% of child victims of sexual abuse know their offender.

“Every day there seems to be a report about an abduction or a molestation,” said Samantha Kurtzman-Counter with The Mother Company.

Samantha and Abbie are both moms. Together they created The Mother Company and teamed up with child safety experts to teach kids 5 safety tips.

1) Learn to recognize the uh-oh feeling.(Its when you get that feeling that something isn’t safe)

2) If someone else is picking up your child, create a code word. Your child should only get in the car with adults who know the code.

3) Teach kids that “you are the boss of your body” and speak up if touched in an uncomfortable way.

“To teach them that they are the boss of themselves and that no one is allowed to hurt them can protect them from a number of situations,” adds Abbey. Especially in situations where you get separated.

4) If your child is lost-tell them to look for a mom with kids to ask for help

5) Memorize the cell phone number of one safe adult

In case they forget using colorful duct tape and stickers kids can make a safety bracelet with an emergency phone number on the inside.

That last tip applies to adults too, to memorize at least one emergency contact phone number.

See more at – http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=news/health&id=9440811

Posted in: Press