While we don’t like thinking about situations in which they would ever need it, teaching our kids self defense techniques could save their lives one day!
You can search in your area for self defense classes for women and kids, or work on some techniques at home.
This video goes over 5 self defense techniques children can use.
I love the simplicity of the “coin toss” method they teach as a distraction so that the child has time to start running away.
It’s a great reminder to go over these ideas with your kids AND teach them certain “pain points” and where they should hit some one if they are ever being abducted. They talk about some one as young as THREE causing damage to a person in a helmet, because the little girl knew where to hit!
Along with these techniques, it’s also important to teach kids things that go beyond “stranger danger“.
We spend a lot of time telling kids “don’t hit” and “be quiet” – but there’s another lesson there that we can teach at the same time!
Instead of just saying “don’t hit”, we typically take it one step farther and say “don’t hit unless some one is trying to take you away from mommy and daddy”.
My little girl has found it highly amusing to talk about all the things she’s usually not allowed to do, that she CAN do if some one is taking her away from me. Punching, scratching, screaming, kicking…they are all allowed and welcomed if she’s in danger, and she’s known that for as long as she’s been able to talk!
It’s a simple lesson and one that can open the way for self defense classes and other things that can give kids confidence and keep them safer in the middle of a crazy world!
We’ve done this with both of our kids, and it hasn’t made either of them afraid. In fact, it seems to have made them confident because they know (a bit) of the dangers around them in the world, that we are protecting them from AND how to try to protect themselves if they need it.
It’s another way that we teach our kids to protect themselves and prevent child abuse as much as we can. As a survivor of abuse, it’s always been important to me to figure out HOW to protect my kids and open a conversation about these things, even when they are small. For a list of my favorite books that talk about these topics in an age-appropriate way go here.
Do your kids know how to defend themselves? Is there a particular type of self defense class you would recommend?
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