Teach children to say "No" to strangers

As another school year comes around, it is critical to make sure children have all the safety necessities and essentials. There are many things to consider when making a safety checklist. Will your child be walking to school, riding a bike, riding the bus or carpooling?

Will your child have to ever be standing at the bus stop in the dark, as many school days begin when the sun is not up yet? Does your child have rain and cold protection should the weather suddenly change?  All these questions are critical in ensuring children’s safety as the country heads back into a new school year.

Safety Tips

* Make sure that children who ride their bikes to school have bike helmets. This is critical in helping prevent injury.
* If your child is going to participate in sport activities, make sure you have the equipment to protect them: football helmets, knee supports, wrist supports, ankle supports and elbow supports.
* Swim masks are good prevention from chlorine if your child will be participating in swimming during Physical Education class or in an after-school program.
* Children that are old enough, usually around 9 to 10 years old, need to begin to learn how to wake themselves up in the morning. Get them an alarm clock for their own room.
* External hard drives are used frequently in schools to save work. Purchase one for your child.
* Back to school time is a great time to check all the detectors in your home, add any if necessary and make sure they are all in working order.