Back to School Safey

It's that time of the year again when children head back to school and the parents celebrate. With all the celebrating, safety is still a topic most parents worry about. We picked what we considered to be the top safety tips to help you stay safe this school year. 

• Plan a safe route home- If your child walks home, or walks from the bus stop home, plan out a route for them to take. This way you'll know which way they walk and you can avoid dangerous areas, walk this route or drive this route with them a few times so they will be able to know it by memory. If your neighborhood  has no sidewalk area, have them walk on the left side of the street, this way they can see oncoming cars. If your child listens to music or plays on their phone while walking home, explain to them the importance of paying attention to your surroundings. Remind your child that telling you when they leave school, are halfway to home, and when they arrive home via text or phone calls is a great way to keep track of them.

• Stranger Danger- It is highly important to teach children about Stranger Danger. Even if the stranger seems friendly, offers them a gift, or a ride home, they should never accept the offer and yell Stranger Danger as well as run in the opposite direction. This will alert others around them that there is a threat and most often will result in 911 being contacted. Have a secret phrase or word set up between your child and a few other relatives or people who are close with your child so they know that the person is safe to trust. It is also important to teach your child who to go to for help, and who they can trust, such as a police officer, school official, or other parents with children. 

• Habits of locking the door- Making sure your child knows the importance of locking the deadbolt the moment they close the door is a great habit to teach. Have them lock the door they enter to the house the moment they close it and check the remaining doors to ensure they are closed before they start their homework. Also, make sure they know to never open the door for strangers or let anyone know they are home alone. Most kids are very trusting and will open the door for the mailman or the delivery man. If your child is left alone for a length of time, teach them to look through the peephole, rather than the window to see who is at the door and not to respond when someone yells through the closed door for them to open the door.

• Camera systems- These are great for all types of security but the comfort of seeing your child arrive home every day takes the cake. Our security system is activated by motion, so if you install one of the cameras at the front door you can see the moment they come home. This is great for those times they forget to call you and let you know they made it home safely. 

Give us a call today, any of our team members would be happy to help you with your security needs!