BEWARE OF STRANGERS

By Diane Forrest

 I love the move Kindergarten Cop.  I loved watching Arnold Swartzenagger trying to communicate with kindergarteners.  It didn’t take him long to realize it's not as easy as one might think.  One of the scenes at the end of the movie talks about strangers.  His partner, Phoebe, tells the children they must never talk to strangers.  But, it was ok to talk to dogs who are strangers. It wasn't long after that discussion that the bad guy shows up at the school and all the children point at him and yell stranger!!  They ended up getting the bad guy and living happily ever after.

When I was growing up I was taught don’t talk to strangers, don't take candy from a stranger, and tell a policeman if a stranger bothers you.  Kids today seem to be so much smarter than when I was going up.  They live in the electronic and information age and you may forget to teach them the basics, like stay away from strangers.  Here are some other examples to teach young children:

"Don't talk to strangers"

"Don't tell anyone your name"

"Don't let strangers touch your food or drink"

"Don't help strangers

"Don't let strangers touch your face"

"If someone acts too friendly in a theater, complain to an usher or the manager"

One thing to remember is too much constant warning is not a good thing either.  The child will then mistrust any adult, even those who will help them. In situations where the child is in danger for other reasons, avoiding strangers (who might help) could in fact be dangerous itself, such as in the case of an 11-year-old Boy Scout who avoided rescue searchers because he feared they might want to 'steal him.  The fear some parents have can cause them to keep the child indoors and then develop other issues such as nature deficit disorder.

Here is a quiz to share with your kids, or children in your life, to make them aware of strangers.

http://pediatrics.about.com/od/parentingquizzes/l/bl_strngdngr.htm

(Photos from Google)