The week of October 17th to October 23rd has been designated as “Safety Awareness Week”. During this week, we will be rehearsing a variety of emergency school procedures to acquaint students and staff with the precautionary steps to take in the event of such things as a warning of severe weather, an intruder or a fire evacuation. Teachers will review these procedures with students in class prior to our practice drills. This is also a good time for parents to remind children about personal safety.
Here’s what children need to know:
- Their name, age, telephone number, address, city and province. This can be done through rhyme or song.
- How to contact their parents at any time, by memorizing cell or work numbers.
- How and under what circumstances to call 911.
- To never approach or enter a stranger’s vehicle. A responsible adult would neer ask a child for directions or any other questions for that matter.
- If home alone, never admit it when answering the phone. Never answer a knock at the door or speak through it. Adults can be very persuasive. Teach your child to call you if there is a knock at the door and if they fear for their safety, teach them to call 911.
- It is important to play in safe areas, never take shortcuts and stick with a buddy whenever possible.