Sex Offender Safety Guide for Parents & Kids

By Pattie Fitzgerald, CEO of Safely Every AfterA publication of

Red Flags & Warning Signs To Keep Your Children Safe

Featuring The Super Ten, Play-It-Safe Rules for Kids and Grownups!

By Pattie Fitzgerald, Safely Ever After

A publication of:

Sex Off ender Safety Guide for Parents & Kids 2

Red Flags & Warning Signs

Someone who continually tries to arrange time alone with a child, often with lots of reasons or excuses which exclude you

Someone who repeatedly befriends one “outstanding” child, singling them out, lavishing them with extra attention, praise, gifts, aff ection

Someone frequently off ering favors to “help you out”; i.e. babysitting for free, transporting a child to activities, free lessons, or taking kids on overnight trips without their parents

Someone who uses guilt tactics when the child or parent insists on setting boundaries or limits

Someone who insists on being physical with a child (hugging, kissing, tickling, wrestling, lapsitting), even when the child does not want this physical attention

Someone who makes inappropriate comments about a child’s looks or body, particularly sexualizing a child

Someone who continually invites children to spend time alone at their home, enticing them with the latest video or computer games, toys, gadgets, etc. – especially an adult who does not have children of their own

Someone who repeatedly ignores social, emotional, or physical boundaries or limits and seems to have no boundaries of their own

A sex off ender continually seeks ACCESS AND PRIVACY with their intended target as part of their manipulation and grooming process. In addition, there are often other red fl ag warning signs and behaviors to indicate that someone may not be a safe choice around your child. Use common sense, monitor certain relationships that others have with your child, particularly if there are indicators that give YOU an “Uh-Oh Feeling” or just don’t seem right. Best advice for parents:

PAY ATTENTION TO WHO IS PAYING ATTENTION TO YOUR KID

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Someone who frequently enters a bathroom or locker room where children are changing or showering and does not respect a child’s need for privacy

Someone who prefers to spend most of their free time with children and seems to have no interest in age-appropriate relationships or friendships

Someone who appears especially preoccupied with one child

Someone who seems “just too good to be true”

Someone who insists on closed doors and an unobservable environment whenever they are with your child

Someone who seeks to isolate the child from others

Someone who treats a child as if he or she were older

Someone who off ers expensive gifts or money to a child for no reason

Someone who undermines a parent’s authority by allowing children (especially pre-teens) to engage in behaviors or activities that a parent does not allow

Someone who frequently engages in accidental touching, touching games, or invades a child’s personal space

Someone who frequently volunteers to rescue a single parent, stepping in and taking care of parental duties, suggesting they can be a “role model” for the child

Someone who off ers to teach lessons to a child for free as a favor to the parent, when they would normally be paid for this job

Someone who uses secrecy or tries to create a special/secretive relationship with one child

Red Flags & Warning Signs (CONTINUED)

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The Super Ten, Play-It-Safe Rules for Kids and Grownups!

1. I AM THE BOSS OF MY BODY!

2.I know my NAME, ADDRESS, & PHONE NUMBER, and my parents’ names too. (Don’t forget: kids need to know their parents’ cell phone numbers!)

3. Safe Grownups Don’t Ask Kids for Help!! (They go to other grownups if they need assistance).

4. I never go ANYWHERE or take ANYTHING from someone I don’t know.

5.

I must “CHECK FIRST” with my safe-smarts grownup for permission: before I go anywhere, change my plans, or get into a car even if it’s with someone I know. If I can’t check first, then the answer is NO!

6. Everybody’s bathing suit areas are PRIVATE.

7.I don’t have to be POLITE, if someone makes me feel scared or uncomfortable. It’s okay to say NO… even to a grownup, if I have to.

8. I don’t keep SECRETS… especially if they make me feel scared or uneasy. (No adult should tell a child to keep a secret).

9. If I ever get LOST in a public place, I can FREEZE & YELL or go to a Mom with Kids and ask for help.

10. I will always pay attention to my Special Inner Voice, especially if I get an “uh-oh” feeling.

About the Author

www.caregiverchecks.com

By Pattie Fitzgerald

Pattie Fitzgerald has been successfully teaching Child Predator Safety Awareness since 2001. She is the founder and creator of Safely Ever After, Inc. and provides effective, non-fearful safety workshops, seminars, and keynote speeches at schools, community organizations, churches, and corporations throughout the United States. She has trained many crime prevention educators and children’s advocacy groups with her specialized programs, curriculum, and educational materials.

A widely recognized and respected children’s advocate, Pattie has made it her mission to teach parents and children everywhere her “safe-smarts” – which is child-friendly terminology for “street smarts”. Armed with “safe-smarts” parents and children are left feeling empowered, informed and aware – secure in the knowledge that they can take measures to prevent victimization.

As a mom herself, Pattie understands the fears and concerns that other parents are faced with every day when it comes to protecting their children. And… she knows how to deliver the message so that it is heard. Her straight-forward, warm & caring approach has been highly praised by parents, educators, and child advocacy groups across the country.

With her common sense strategies, technical expertise, and parent-friendly guidance, Pattie is expert at dispelling the myths and clarifying the truths surrounding childhood sexual abuse. She is a published author and has been selected by the Los Angeles Sheriff’s M.E.R.I.T. Program as an instructor to incarcerated inmates at the North County Correctional Facility in Castaic, California. Pattie has also recently been named as the Safety and Prevention Advisor for the newly formed child advocacy group, PeasInTheirPods.com. Prior to the inception of Safely Ever After, Inc., Pattie previously worked as the Community Outreach Educator for the national child advocacy group, Parents For Megan’s Law.

She has been featured on Good Morning America, CNN Headline News and MSNBC, as well as KCBS-2, KNBC-4 and KABC-7. Her written works have been published in numerous parenting magazines, trade journals, and newspapers throughout the United States.

For more information, or to book your own workshop, visit http://safelyeverafter.com/ or call 310-203-1330.

A publication of:

Sex Offender Safety Guide for Parents & KidsBY PATTIE FITZGERALD