As a parent you are preoccupied often with thoughts of danger that surround your child. And the news does not make it better. If anything it increases the anxiety that we have when it comes to child protection. We have to shelter them from television shows that depict too much sex and violence. We have to monitor the computer to ensure that they are not giving out personal information to a potentially deadly individual. Even the bus ride to school, and for that matter school itself, becomes a danger zone in which we have to worry about our children. There are some steps you can take to protect your child from danger. This article will cover many of the basics. Hopefully it will give you peace of mind and a way to exorcise all of the demons that often haunt parents when it comes to child protection.
How can child protection be used where the internet is concerned?
It seems these days that every time you read the newspaper you see an article about how some child was cyber bullied, was abducted or accosted by some stranger on the internet. There are ways you can protect your child from harm when it comes to internet usage. The first child protection step you should take is educating them about giving out personal information. Yes, there are many dangerous people that lurk on the internet trying to find children. It is your job to ensure that your child knows not to put their real name on any website or give out phone numbers, street addresses or even what school they go to. Internet predators are wily and know many different ways to coax information out of a child. They pretend to be the child’s friend and try to get the child to feel close to them. They may often identify with the child’s problems with family and friends just to get their trust. There are some great software programs that can block certain websites and even monitor your child’s activities. But as the child gets older you will have to make sure that they have enough common sense to know who to trust and who not to trust. Until that time when they are mature enough, you should have full access to their email and any social networking site they might belong too. Also try to discourage your child from posting pictures on any social networking site or webpage. Internet predators will often try to identify the background of a picture to determine the child’s location. Another step you can take is to make sure that the child’s computer or family computer that the child uses is in the living room or where someone can be around at any time. This will help discourage them from attempting to visit web pages that are forbidden or from striking up conversations with strangers through instant messaging programs.
How can I tell if my child has been the victim of abuse?
There are a few key signs to watch for if you think your child is the victim of any type of abuse. The first is if a suddenly outgoing child becomes withdrawn emotionally and physically. The second is if they begin harming themselves in any way. Often victims of sexual abuse will turn to physically injuring themselves as a means of coping with what is happening to them. The best child protection tools you can give to your child to help prevent something like this from happening is knowledge. You should teach your child that no one has the right to hit them for any reason. You should also teach them the “No-No zone” which means that no one has the right to touch them inappropriately. They can tell the difference between a parent touching them affectionately and someone who is touching them inappropriately.
How can I teach my child about child protection?
The first thing you can do is teach them that their body is their own. No one else has the right to hurt them or touch them inappropriately. You can also teach them basic child protection rules such as never running across a street without looking. They should never talk to a stranger or accept anything from a stranger such as a ride or a treat. You can also teach them emergency phone numbers and people they can call in case they are in trouble and you are not around. You should teach them how to react if a stranger approaches them and what to do if someone tries to hurt them. Some of these child protection rules are common sense but you would be amazed at how many parents take them for granted. Each day there are innocent children hurt by predators. The more you can teach your child about the outside world, without scaring them senseless, the better off they will be.
Where can I learn more about child protection?
Believe it or not the best place to learn more about child protection is the internet. There are hundreds and hundreds of websites, groups and chat rooms devoted to parents. If you need advice you can do a simple Google search and see what others have to say. Someone else may have had the same issue or question about protecting their child and have an answer for you. You can also check out parenting magazines for tips on how best to protect your child.
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