Back to School Child Safety

As you and your children transition into the back-to-school routine, important safety tips and precautions should be given top priority. In addition to making sure that you have an up-to-date Ident-A-Kid card for your child’s Identification, The U.S. Department of Justice and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children have compiled ten Tips for Parents or Guardians for back to school safety.

1. Instruct your children to always take a friend, always stay in well-lit areas, never take shortcuts, and never go into isolated areas. Teach them to stay aware of their surroundings and observe all traffic rules in place to more safely share the roads and sidewalks with others.

2. Walk the route to and from school with your children pointing out landmarks and safe places to go if they're being followed or need help. Make the walk to and from school a "teachable moment" and chance to put their skills to the test. Make a map with your children showing acceptable routes to and from school. If your children wait for a bus, wait with them or make arrangements for supervision at the bus stop.

3. If anyone bothers your children or makes them feel scared, uncomfortable, or confused, while going to or from school, teach your children to trust their feelings, immediately get away from that person, and tell you or another trusted adult. If an adult approaches your children for help or directions, remember grownups needing help should not ask children for help; they should ask other adults. Instruct your children to never accept money or gifts from anyone unless you have told them it is okay to accept in each instance.

4. Even though there can be safety in numbers it is still not safe for young children to walk to and from school, especially if they must take isolated routes anytime during the day or in darkness. Always provide supervision for your young children to help ensure their safe arrival to and from school.

5. Instruct your children to leave items and clothing with their name on them at home. If anyone calls out their name, teach them to not be fooled or confused. Teach your children about the tricks someone may try to use to confuse them or engage them in conversation. Children should also be taught that they do not need to be polite if approached and to get out of the situation as quickly and safely as possible.

6. Ensure current and accurate emergency contact information is on file for your children at their school. If you, or another trusted family member or friend, need to pick your children up, make sure to follow the school's departure procedures. These procedures need to include the school's confirmation of your children's departure with only those you authorize to pick them up.

7. Teach your children if anyone tries to take them somewhere they should quickly get away and yell, "This person is trying to take me away" or "This person is not my father/mother/guardian." Teach your children to make a scene and every effort to get away by kicking, screaming, and resisting if anyone tries to grab them.

8. Teach your children if anyone follows them on foot to get away from that person as quickly as possible. If anyone follows them in a vehicle they should turn around, go in the other direction, and try to quickly get to a spot where a trusted adult may help them. Advise them to be sure to tell you or another trusted adult what happened.

9. Instruct your children to never leave school with anyone until they've checked with a trusted adult. If anyone tells them there is an emergency and they want your children to go with them, teach your children to always check first with you before doing anything. Also teach your children to always check first with you if they want to change their plans before or after school. Make sure your children always play with other children, have your permission to play in specific areas, and let you know where they are going to be. Instruct your children to tell a trusted adult if they notice anyone they don't know or feel uncomfortable with hanging around them.

10. In the event your children may be lost or injured, make sure they carry a contact card with your name and telephone numbers such as work and cellular. This card should be hidden from plain view.

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children also highlight the following 5 tips to reinforce with your children:

1. Always TAKE A FRIEND with you when walking, biking, or standing at the bus stop. Make sure you know your bus number and which bus to ride.

2. Say NO to anyone you don’t know or a person who makes you feel scared, uncomfortable, or confused

3. Quickly get away and YELL, “THIS PERSON IS NOT MY MOTHER/FATHER/GUARDIAN” if anyone tries to take you somewhere or is following you. If anyone tries to grab you, make a scene and every effort to get away by kicking, screaming, and resisting.

4. NEVER LEAVE SCHOOL GROUNDS before the regular school day ends. Always check with the office and me before leaving school early.

5. NEVER take shortcuts or walk through alleys to get to or from school. We will talk about which way to go to and from school. Remind me if activities you participate in cause you to leave earlier or arrive home later than usual. Remember to call me once you have arrived home.

For more information or to see the source of these Child Safety Tips, visit the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s Website at www.missingkids.com

In addition to providing parents child identification cards, Ident-A-Kid also helps keep children safe at school by providing schools with our Complete Campus Security Solution (CCSS) software. This comprehensive visitor management tool is donated by Ident-A-Kid to the schools in the communities they serve.

CCSS allows schools to easily track all visitors and issue a variety of ID badges, including photo, by just pointing and clicking. Your campus can be a safer place by printing “on demand” Visitor, Volunteer, Substitute, and Student passes. Also, an archived photo can be automatically taken of each visitor or their driver’s license can be scanned at Check In for positive ID. Additionally, this software enables you to instantly check to see if new visitors are listed as convicted sexual offenders in the U.S. Department of Justice’s national database.

Our Complete Campus Security Solution has many features!
· CCSS is very user friendly
· We have a toll-free support line to call for any questions (800-890-1000)
· CCSS can track all visitors that are on the school’s campus
· CCSS can also track students leaving early or arriving late
· CCSS can track Employees, Substitutes, and Contractors
· CCSS can track volunteers by the date and time
· New RFID JiffyPass™ Badges make Checking In and Out quick and easy for frequent visitors
· CCSS has a link provided for the U.S. Dept of Justice’s Convicted Sexual Offenders Database
· Seven variable badge categories (school’s choice)
· Frequent visitor list for fast processing
· Password-protected utilities and reporting
· Archival capability
· User Help screens with FAQs and Operational Procedures
· NO CONTRACTS – Free Software Upgrades!

There are many Optional Features for CCSS!
· Optional Driver’s License Scanner
· Optional Double Dymo Printer for printing badges and late slips
· Optional Photo Capture of all Check-Ins for positive ID
· Optional Badge Description field for bilingual translation or detailed instruction
· Option for automatic Check-Out
· Optional Barcode Reader
· Touch Screen Compatible
For more information or to order Complete Campus Security Solution software for your school today, just visit http://www.betoosafe.com/ and click Orders or call your local Ident-A-Kid program director.

Child Safety Education

Even though child identification is a big aspect of our business, Ident-A-Kid is committed to child safety and the protection of children. This is why Ident-A-Kid has partnered the Child Rescue Network, a non-profit charity dedicated to protecting children. As part of our partnership many of our Ident-A-Kid Program Directors have received several hours of child safety training by the Child Rescue Network and have become Certified Child Safety Representatives. They have become certified in order to be able to provide educational programs for parents. They can come to your church, PTA, HOA, or other venues to help parents teach their children to become aware of possible dangerous situations and how to react to these situations. Just contact the Child Rescue Network at 877-209-5437 ext. 81 to find out about scheduling a program with a representative near you. Below is a list of our Program Directors certified by CRN and their area.
v Barbara Sandler – Southeast Florida
v Linda Emery – Southwest Florida
v Leslea Amidon – Northeast Florida
v David Fields – New York City
v Lillian Dorazio – New Hampshire
v Jerry Devine – Rhode Island
v Joyce Gold – Pennsylvania
v LuEllen Rierson – Southeast North Carolina
v Kirk Cox – Southeast South Carolina
v Delores Parker – Oklahoma
v De De White – Alabama

More information can be found at www.childrescuenetwork.org

Child Safety Rules

It is so important for you and your child to know some general safety rules. Learning and practicing some general safety rules can better prepare you and your child to make the right decisions about safety. Rather than have your children be afraid of their environment, teaching them these few, simple rules can assist them in knowing how to react to situations where they feel there might be trouble. Teaching them these rules can also help your child to be better able to recognize and avoid a potentially dangerous situation. It doesn’t take long, only a couple hours set aside to practice and learn. Just click on the links below provided by the Child Rescue Network (CRN) and you can download and print a child and adult version of CRN’s child safety rules.
http://www.childrescuenetwork.org/images/crnsafetyrules-parentedition.pdf
http://www.childrescuenetwork.org/images/crnsafetyrulesabreviated-childedition.pdf
These Child Safety Rules are provided by and can also be located at www.childrescuenetwork.org

Make sure to update your child's Ident-A-Kid card!

It is a great idea to get an Ident-A-Kid card for your child, but you have to be sure to keep it up-to-date!

Why get a new Ident-A-Kid card every year when I can just get one for my child and renew it in a few years? This is a question that is frequently asked of us here at Ident-A-Kid. According to the World Health Organization at www.who.int, children between the ages of 5 and 19 can grow from 2 to 4 inches and gain up to 10 pounds per year! Also, according to www.thetech.org, children’s hair color can change or darken as they grow older; going from a blonde head of hair to brunette. All this growing and changing can make a very big difference in your child’s appearance. It is very important to have an up-to-date, accurate picture and description of your child at all times. With an accurate description of your child, he/she can be found much easier and more efficiently if lost or missing. Not having the right weight, height or hair color can greatly hinder the search for a missing child.

Ident-A-Kid is Now In the Blogosphere

Ident-A-Kid has been at the forefront of child safety for 23 years. We reach millions of parents through our 200 franchise locations in 40 states.

We plan to use this new medium (to us) to communicate general topics concerning child safety.

Please feel free to post your comments and feedback to us.