Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
My name is Harold Johnson.
I'm the moderator for this video series,
7 Kidpower Strategies to Keep Your Child Safe.
This video presents...
As someone who has been a teacher of the deaf
since 1971, public school administrator
and academia since 1980, preparing individuals
to be teachers of the deaf, I know that many individuals
who interact with children who are deaf or hard of hearing
or kids that have disabilities aren't comfortable.
They don't really know what to do.
They're afraid they're going to do something wrong.
They don't want to embarrass their child or themselves.
This embarrassment makes them really very hesitant
to act or even to interact with kids with disabilities,
and what you're going to hear about
in this first Kidpower strategy is that
that embarrassment puts kids at risk.
I'm very pleased to bring up Irene van der Zande,
who will talk to you about this first
"Kidpower Strategy: Put Safety First."
Kidpower's underlying principle is
that the safety and healthy self-esteem of a child are
more important than anyone's embarrassment,
inconvenience, or offense.
As Harold said, feelings like embarrassment, discomfort,
worry about making people angry at you or upset with you,
or bothering somebody are powerful feelings
that can get in the way of putting safety first.
For example, if we text while driving,
then it may be very convenient, but it's unsafe.
The question to ask yourself,
and to show your child,
is that you are going to make a decision to not text,
to wait, and do that when you're done driving.
In terms of personal safety, one of the stories
that Timothy Dunphy, who is our other program cofounder,
says is that when his daughter, Rhiannon, was very young,
her grandfather, his father, used to come and visit.
He would say, "Rhiannon, if you want to give me a kiss,
then I'll give you this present."
And even though it might have upset his dad,
Timothy knew that forced affection is not true love,
and he would say to his daughter and his father,
"We don't give kisses for presents.
You can give her the present without the kiss."
And his father said, "Ok."
Now sometimes parents or grandparents get very upset
about things like this, so we can find ways
to educate people about these principles.
Another situation can be that maybe it's the end of
the school day and parents are standing all around
and a teacher is done with the school day
and the kids are being mean to each other.
If parents don't speak up,
even if it's another person's child,
or if the teacher doesn't speak up,
then we're giving a lie to all anti-bullying activities
at that school, including those signs
that say respect each other-- no bullying.
If an adult walks by, then kids don't have the tools
they need to believe that the adults really mean it.
Another example can be that somebody is
in a position of authority and may mean very well.
One mother told about her daughter who had
some sensory difficulties and was getting worked up
during after-school programs.
The teacher took her into another room,
put earbuds on to let her listen to music,
and said, "Let's make this our little secret."
Now, the girl's older brother told the mom.
Maybe this teacher had no bad intentions
and didn't understand the implications
of what he was saying.
But the mom intervened,
even though it was very uncomfortable
explaining to the school principal,
as well as to the teacher, why keeping anything,
activity or touch, a secret was not safe.
And they listened even though it was hard.
What Harold was talking about is somebody doesn't interact
with your child or sometimes people say
the wrong thing to a child with disabilities.
Knowing how to stay calm and say something rather
than just ignoring it helps bring that message home
to your child that her or his safety
and healthy self-esteem are truly important.
Even if somebody else doesn't like it,
it's worth speaking up for, and that can make a difference
for them their whole lives long.
Irene, thank you very much for sharing with us
this first Kidpower strategy.
It makes sense, it's important, it's doable,
and I encourage you to watch the remaining videos.
Your child's safety depends on it.
Thank you.