Stranger danger at home

NorthMinnesota · 04-26-2005

Anyone else watch the segment the past two mornings on Good Morning America??? WOW! I could hardly believe how many kids let strangers in to their homes!!

Or the ones who got in to cars with a stranger! What an eye-opener! The kids all fell for lame stories...need to use a phone, cat ran in to their back yard and need to get it, I'm a police man, will you mail this letter, etc. Most moms said their kids would NEVER open the door...they did. Very disturbing. Most of the kids were in that 10-15 age group, too. When parents asked why they did it none could give a good reason. Guess my girls need more reinforcement.

Silver Starfish · 04-26-2005

My husband saw it yesterday morning and called me at work and talked all about it (and he doesn't usually talk that much, more of a great listener) He would like to purchase the tape because he thought it was so good. Would you show it to your kids as a teaching tool or was it too scary? Was today's show more of the same or how did it differ from yesterday? Wish I would have known so I could have taped it.

Does anyone know how to purchase the tape of the show?

Big Kahuna · 04-26-2005

You can order transcripts from ABC.com (usually)

04-26-2005

You can email and request from this email address NETAUDR@abc.com, or you can go to their video store to order at newstore.com- I didn't see the stranger danger series listed yet.

NorthMinnesota · 04-26-2005

No, wasn't scary just disturbing as a parent. I think there is another segment tomorrow. I'm still trying to figure out why the kids allowed the guy such easy access. We talked about yesterday's show at book club last night and we talked about how we pressure/teach our kids to be polite to adults. Authority figures and intimidation add a different twist to personal safety.

NorthMinnesota · 04-26-2005

Yesterday's show was on how easy it is to get a child in a car. Today's was on getting in to your house. Not sure what tomorrow's is.

04-26-2005

According to the website tomorrow's is self-defense for kids.

MWC · 04-26-2005

The best piece of advice I heard on what to tell your child came from John Walsh, of America's Most Wanted. Acknowledging that we do teach our children to be respectful of adults, he came up with one piece of advice that didn't necessarily contradict that training -- but would help a kid differentiate the situation. And keeping it simple makes it easy to drum it into their heads:

"A grownup stranger NEVER needs a child's help. If a grownup stranger has picked you to ask for help, get away from that stranger. Go find an adult to help him."

Made sense to me.

Seakony · 04-26-2005

I once was talking to my parents next door neighbor's little girl one day. There is a chain link fence that divides the property in the back yard. She just came up to the fence and started talking to me. She finally asked me what my name was. I replied that my name was "stranger". Boy, did her eyes get big as she took a few steps back away from the fence. Children need to be reminded that even middle aged women are strangers too.

Ginger · 04-26-2005

We thought we had done a pretty good job of creating paranoia in our kids about strangers, and they are pretty aware of situations, etc. and we remind them fairly often. However, when we were living in Playa, Kelsey was coming into the condo behind me as she was walking a little more slowly. (a LOT more slowly) and I was carrying a bunch of groceries. As I was putting things away, I realized she had been awhile and I leaned out the door and I could hear here talking to someone. I went down the stairwell to the first floor, where she was standing right at the door of one of the neighbours downstairs, a guy I didn't know and hadn't seen before. He saw me and just went inside and closed the door.

I asked Kelsey what he was asking her, but she said he was hard to understand as he didn't speak much english, and she was trying to speak some Spanish, but I reemed her out for talking to him like that. She answered that it was okay because he was our neighbour, which I thought was a scary thing for her to think. I tried to explain to here that we STILL didn't know him at all, and he could easily have had her in his apartment and had the door locked in about 10 seconds and I wouldn't have known where she went, or what had happened to her, and just that easily she could disappear.

Call me paranoid, but I prefer to lay it out straight to the kids even if it may result in a little well-placed histeria. Maybe it may make them a little more aware and keep them safe should they ever fall into that kind of a predicament, god forbid.

TAPPY · 04-26-2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ginger

Call me paranoid, but I prefer to lay it out straight to the kids even if it may result in a little well-placed histeria. Maybe it may make them a little more aware and keep them safe should they ever fall into that kind of a predicament, god forbid.

You are so right.....my daughter is so sweet and trusting if some one told her an animal was in trouble or some sob story she would fall for it...
I always tell her all the scary stuff that can happen but I know she thinks I am over protective.....every time you turn on the news it is another horror story about a child being kiddnapped/killed.....

NorthMinnesota · 04-27-2005

GMA had another segment this morning about a young teen girl at a hotel with her family. She left her group and ran to her room by herself, got in elevator, a man got in after her in the lobby and put a gun to her head. Got her out of the hotel by back stairs. Smart girl started kicking and screaming in back parking lot and escaped! I know my kids have gone by themselves several times when they've traveled with soccer/basketball teams for out of town tourneys. Gave me the creeps! Youngest leaves for tourney in Illinois this weekend....will have a long talk, again, before we leave!

04-26-2005	#1 (permalink)
NorthMinnesota añejo Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Minnesota Posts: 5,601	Stranger danger at home Anyone else watch the segment the past two mornings on Good Morning America??? WOW! I could hardly believe how many kids let strangers in to their homes!! Or the ones who got in to cars with a stranger! What an eye-opener! The kids all fell for lame stories...need to use a phone, cat ran in to their back yard and need to get it, I'm a police man, will you mail this letter, etc. Most moms said their kids would NEVER open the door...they did. Very disturbing. Most of the kids were in that 10-15 age group, too. When parents asked why they did it none could give a good reason. Guess my girls need more reinforcement.

04-26-2005	#2 (permalink)
Silver Starfish way into it Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Connecticut Posts: 179	?? My husband saw it yesterday morning and called me at work and talked all about it (and he doesn't usually talk that much, more of a great listener) He would like to purchase the tape because he thought it was so good. Would you show it to your kids as a teaching tool or was it too scary? Was today's show more of the same or how did it differ from yesterday? Wish I would have known so I could have taped it. Does anyone know how to purchase the tape of the show?

04-26-2005	#3 (permalink)
Big Kahuna añejo Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: In a land far far away Posts: 1,590	You can order transcripts from ABC.com (usually)

04-26-2005	#4 (permalink)
flt72 Guest Posts: n/a	You can email and request from this email address NETAUDR@abc.com, or you can go to their video store to order at newstore.com- I didn't see the stranger danger series listed yet.

04-26-2005	#5 (permalink)
NorthMinnesota añejo Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Minnesota Posts: 5,601	No, wasn't scary just disturbing as a parent. I think there is another segment tomorrow. I'm still trying to figure out why the kids allowed the guy such easy access. We talked about yesterday's show at book club last night and we talked about how we pressure/teach our kids to be polite to adults. Authority figures and intimidation add a different twist to personal safety.

04-26-2005	#6 (permalink)
NorthMinnesota añejo Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Minnesota Posts: 5,601	Yesterday's show was on how easy it is to get a child in a car. Today's was on getting in to your house. Not sure what tomorrow's is.

04-26-2005	#7 (permalink)
flt72 Guest Posts: n/a	According to the website tomorrow's is self-defense for kids.

04-26-2005	#8 (permalink)
MWC añejo Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Connecticut Posts: 6,197	The best piece of advice I heard on what to tell your child came from John Walsh, of America's Most Wanted. Acknowledging that we do teach our children to be respectful of adults, he came up with one piece of advice that didn't necessarily contradict that training -- but would help a kid differentiate the situation. And keeping it simple makes it easy to drum it into their heads: "A grownup stranger NEVER needs a child's help. If a grownup stranger has picked you to ask for help, get away from that stranger. Go find an adult to help him." Made sense to me.

04-26-2005	#9 (permalink)
Seakony añejo Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: no longer in Mesquite with nothing to do Posts: 10,151	I once was talking to my parents next door neighbor's little girl one day. There is a chain link fence that divides the property in the back yard. She just came up to the fence and started talking to me. She finally asked me what my name was. I replied that my name was "stranger". Boy, did her eyes get big as she took a few steps back away from the fence. Children need to be reminded that even middle aged women are strangers too.

04-26-2005	#10 (permalink)
Ginger none Join Date: Apr 2001 Posts: 10,170	We thought we had done a pretty good job of creating paranoia in our kids about strangers, and they are pretty aware of situations, etc. and we remind them fairly often. However, when we were living in Playa, Kelsey was coming into the condo behind me as she was walking a little more slowly. (a LOT more slowly) and I was carrying a bunch of groceries. As I was putting things away, I realized she had been awhile and I leaned out the door and I could hear here talking to someone. I went down the stairwell to the first floor, where she was standing right at the door of one of the neighbours downstairs, a guy I didn't know and hadn't seen before. He saw me and just went inside and closed the door. I asked Kelsey what he was asking her, but she said he was hard to understand as he didn't speak much english, and she was trying to speak some Spanish, but I reemed her out for talking to him like that. She answered that it was okay because he was our neighbour, which I thought was a scary thing for her to think. I tried to explain to here that we STILL didn't know him at all, and he could easily have had her in his apartment and had the door locked in about 10 seconds and I wouldn't have known where she went, or what had happened to her, and just that easily she could disappear. Call me paranoid, but I prefer to lay it out straight to the kids even if it may result in a little well-placed histeria. Maybe it may make them a little more aware and keep them safe should they ever fall into that kind of a predicament, god forbid.

04-27-2005	#12 (permalink)
NorthMinnesota añejo Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Minnesota Posts: 5,601	GMA had another segment this morning about a young teen girl at a hotel with her family. She left her group and ran to her room by herself, got in elevator, a man got in after her in the lobby and put a gun to her head. Got her out of the hotel by back stairs. Smart girl started kicking and screaming in back parking lot and escaped! I know my kids have gone by themselves several times when they've traveled with soccer/basketball teams for out of town tourneys. Gave me the creeps! Youngest leaves for tourney in Illinois this weekend....will have a long talk, again, before we leave!

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