Research and Standards Based Personal Safety Lessons

Last year our district pilot tested the Committee for Children Child Protection Unit.  We had used other personal safety programs in the past but did not have anything in place across schools. We wanted a program that was evidence-based for our school counseling core curriculum.

A needs assessment in our county had shown that too high a percentage of students in our middle school were reporting that they had been inappropriately touched at school on a confidential survey. Nationally, 1 in 5 girls and 1 in 20 boys is a victim of child sexual abuse Only one third of victims of sexual abuse disclose that they have been abused.

We liked the Child Protection Unit because it teaches children to be aware of what actions and behaviors are inappropriate instead of teaching them to beware of a stereotypical “bad guy.” The stranger danger concept may risk allowing children to let their guard down around anyone who does not fit into that box. Children will be cautious of people they do not know which can help keep them safe, but it also means that when someone they know harms them it makes it harder to understand that a crime was committed. There are lessons about basic safety as well as those aimed at preventing sexual abuse.

This year we are using the Child Protection Unit across our county. Of course a few parents wanted to debate what we call "private body parts" (or use anatomically correct terms) but overall it has been well received by the students and appreciated by the parents.

For our district it makes sense to use this curriculum because we already use Second Step and the Bullying Unit by the Committee for Children so it reinforces the same key terms: recognize, refuse, and report. We did not use all of the materials because principals were nervous about backlash (like if the person doing the inappropriate touching is a family member), but hopefully next year we can include that lesson because it does happen in the real world.

Stranger Safety Resources

When teaching personal safety lessons I start by asking the students if they have heard of "stranger danger."  Usually 90% say "yes." I then tell them to take their hands make a ball put stranger danger in their hands and throw it out the window.  They like this warm-up and I have their attention.

The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children® (NCMEC) does not support the “stranger danger” message. The majority of cases have shown most children are not taken by a stranger, but rather are abducted by someone they know. If we tell children to “never talk to strangers,” we have effectively eliminated a key source of help for them. If they are lost they may be surrounded by many rescuers who could help them. If children perceive these people as “strangers,” they may not speak or reach out to them. There have been cases in which a child’s rescue was delayed because the lost child was afraid to call out to the “strangers” when rescuers were nearby. Check out all of their resources at missingkids.com

Another resource is the Yello Dyno Method™ a scientifically based research program of Dr. Roger Sperry and the internationally recognized research on children in crisis of Dr. Bruce Perry. It works in real life because the information is stored in the part of the brain that activates in the "fight or flight" response.  Find out more about this method at yellodyno.com

One of my favorite books to share in first grade classrooms on this important topic is Scoop by Julia Cook.

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