School Safety

For most of the year, children spend more time at school than anywhere else other than their own home. At school, children need a secure, positive, and comfortable environment to help them learn.


Overall, schools are one of the safest places children can be. However, some schools have problems, such as bullying and theft, which make them less secure. These problems make students and educators feel less safe, and it makes it harder for students to learn and for teachers to do their jobs.


But there are specific ways that parents can make going to school a safer and more valuable learning experience for their children.


In the Classroom

1. Kids need a safe and comfortable environment to learn to the best of their capabilities. This means they have to feel safe in their school and be able to positively interact with their teachers and classmates. By doing the following, parents and other adults can help make sure children have a positive school experience.
2. Talk to your children about their day. Sometimes children won’t tell you right away if they are having problems at school. Ask your children if they see anyone bullied, if they are bullied, or if anything else makes them feel uncomfortable. Look for warning signs, such as a sudden drop in grades, loss of friends, or torn clothing.
3. Teach children to resolve problems without fighting. Explain that fighting could lead to them getting hurt, hurting someone else, or earning a reputation as a bully. Talk to them about other ways they can work out a problem, such as talking it out, walking away, sticking with friends, or telling a trusted adult.
4. Keep an eye on your children’s Internet use. Many elementary schools have computers with Internet access. Ask your children’s school if students are monitored when they use the Internet or if there is a blocking device installed to prevent children from finding explicit websites. Talk to your children about what they do online – what sites they visit, who they email, and who they chat with. Let them know they can talk to you if anything they see online makes them uncomfortable, whether it’s an explicit website or a classmate bullying them or someone else through email, chat, or websites.
5. Ask about the safety and emergency plans for your children’s school. How are local police involved? How are students and parents involved? What emergencies have been considered and planned for?

Traveling To and From School

1. Map out with your children a safe way for them to walk to school or to the bus stop. Avoid busy roads and intersections. Do a trial run with them to point out places they should avoid along the way, such as vacant lots, construction areas, and parks where there aren’t many people.
2. Teach children to follow traffic signals and rules when walking or biking. Stress that they should cross the street at crosswalks or intersections with crossing guards when they can.
3. Encourage children to walk to school or the bus stop with a sibling or friend, and to wait at bus stops with other children.
4. Teach children not to talk to strangers, go anywhere with them, or accept gifts from them without your permission. Tell them that if they see a suspicious stranger hanging around or in their school they should tell an adult.
5. Help children memorize their phone number and full address, including area code and zip code. Write down other important phone numbers such as your work and cell phone on a card for your children to carry with them.

On the bus

1. Have your children arrive at the bus stop at least five minutes before the bus is scheduled to pick them up.
2. Make sure children know to stand on the sidewalk or on the grass while waiting for the bus.
3. Teach children to make sure they can see the bus driver and the bus driver can see them before crossing in front of the bus. Tell them to never walk behind the bus.
4. Be aware that often bullying takes place on the school bus. Ask children about their bus - who they sit with, who they talk to, and what the other kids do. Let them know that if they see someone being bullied, or are bullied themselves, they can talk to you, the bus driver, or another trusted adult.

A missing child: Search and Find!

Lassy Project

When it comes to a missing child, every second counts. The Lassy Project is a free service that gives parents and guardians the ability to notify an entire local community about their missing child in just seconds.

With this app you send a text alert, hence parents can mobilize a trusted group of family, friends and neighbors immediately to help with their search. To get more details click here.

===============================

Six year old Isabel Celis disappeared from her Tucson home in 2012. For her story please click here.

Fireworks Safety tips from TPD

The Tucson Fire Department is appealing to all Tucson Citizens to be responsible this year and not participate in illegal fireworks. There are many alternative ways to celebrate America's birthday besides the use of dangerous, unpredictable and illegal fireworks.

"Remember, you are not only endangering your children and homes but those of your neighbors as well” says Fire Chief Dan Newburn. “Please weigh the severe risk with the benefits of a few moments of entertainment.”

During July, the emergency room has its share of visits from injured kids – broken bones from falls, cuts and abrasions from bike crashes, and bruises from playing sports. What we might not expect to see are toddlers with major burns on their faces or kids who have lost a hand or eye – all as a result of fireworks.

Families across the nation will celebrate the Fourth of July with picnics, outings to the beach and neighborhood bar-b-ques. Above all, fireworks displays will be the highlight of Fourth of July festivities.

Unfortunately, these exciting and fun festivities can quickly turn into tragedies. Every year, more than 5,000 children ages 14 and under are treated in emergency rooms for fireworks-related injuries, and children 10 to 14 account for most of these incidents. Nearly 75 percent of these injuries occur during the month surrounding the Fourth of July. Sparklers, while often considered the safest type of fireworks, join firecrackers and rockets as those causing the bulk of emergency room-treated injuries.

Many parents and caregivers over-estimate their children’s ability to handle fireworks, creating a dangerous environment for everyone involved. Fireworks-related injuries usually involve the hands/fingers, eyes or head and can sometimes result in amputations, blindness and/or even death.

“Fireworks historically have been an important part of a Fourth of July celebration for kids, yet each year hundreds of kids are permanently disfigured or worse due to burns caused by fireworks that ended up in the wrong hands, ” said Tucson Fire Department Deputy Chief Randy Ogden. “Please remember that this year it is even more important that parents set an example and not participate in illegal fireworks”.

Homemade or illegal fireworks are extremely dangerous and should never be used by your family.

Tucson Police Officers and Tucson Fire Department Fire Prevention Inspectors will be on duty during the evening hours and will actively cite individuals lighting illegal fireworks… and all fireworks are illegal within the City limits of Tucson.

The Tucson Fire Department recommends that parents take this opportunity to discuss the following with their families:

• Tell children that they should leave the area immediately if their friends are using fireworks and tell an adult.
• Discuss fire safety with your children. Teach children to “stop, drop and roll” if their clothes catch fire. Make sure they know how to call 9-1-1.
• Never place your face or any other body part over fireworks.
• Never try to re-ignite fireworks that malfunction.
• Never carry fireworks in your pocket.

The Tucson Fire Department recommends these important guidelines to help keep your Fourth of July festivities enjoyable and safe. Don’t let dangerous sparks stand between your family and a wonderful Fourth of July celebration. For additional information contact Deputy Chief Randy Ogden @ 791-4502

Survival stories of few strong kids!

 

- A ten year old girl survives an abduction attempt, runs off with her brother...click here

-Watch a young girl fight for her life and prevent a horrible abduction...click here.

-A 14 year old Phoenix teen protects his siblings during a home invasion.....click here.

-A small four year old saves the lives of his Grandparents during a house fire...click here.

-Watch as a thirteen year old takes action on a school bus to save lives....click here.

Why have a Good Photo of Your Child?

One of the most important tools for law enforcement to use in the case of a missing child is... an up-to-date, good-quality photograph.

Noted below are some tips for parents and guardians regarding such a photograph.

The photograph should be:

• a recent, head-and-shoulders color photograph of the child in which the face is clearly seen.
• of "school-portrait" quality, and the background should be plain or solid so it does not distract from the subject.
• in a digitized form and available on a compact disk (CD), as opposed to just a hard copy. This minimizes the time necessary to scan, resize, and make color corrects before disseminating it to law enforcement.
• an accurate depiction of the child, not overly posed or "glamorized." Nor should other people, animals, or objects be in the photograph. The photograph should not be taken outside, out of focus, torn, damaged, or very small.
• have space below is for a narrative description to Identify the childs name, nickname, height, weight, gender, eye color, marks, moles, braces and glasses.
• updated at least every six months for children 6 years of age or younger and then once a year, or when a child's appearance changes.
• All copies of child's photograph and information should be maintained in an easily accessible, secure space by the parents or guardian.
• The photograph and data should not be stored in a public database.