Koon's watch

With the end of summer here, I want to cover school safety in the next two editions of Koon’s Watch.

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

Here are some tips to help make sure your children have a positive school experience.

Talk to your children about their day. 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.

Talk to your child about resolving problems without fighting. Teach them about other ways to work out a problem, such as talking it out, walking away, sticking with friends or telling a trusted adult.

Talk to your children about what they’re doing online. Become familiar with what sites they visit, who they chat with and what they’re posting.

Talk to your children about the safety and emergency plans at their school. This is a great opportunity to cover the same subjects with teachers and administrators at your children’s school. Find out how you’d be contacted in an emergency and where you would pick your children up if something were to happen at the school to disrupt the routine dismissal program.

Next week I’ll cover tips for keeping your children safe on their way to and from school.