Hello and welcome to Ask Robyn

Thank you very much for reaching out to look for support regarding your query about stranger awareness for children.

To begin, we are not fully sure if we have interpreted your question correctly. Are you asking how to raise children’s awareness about strangers?

Building clear boundaries

If that is your question, it is important to set good and clear boundaries with your children. Boundaries create a consistent and predictable environment that reduces anxiety, helps children understand limits, and teaches respectful social behaviour.

This can be done in many different ways. For example, you could create a game using the names of family members and friends, and then add some random names to represent people the child does not know. Write these names on pieces of paper and go through them with the child, asking where they would place each person in a ranking system.

This activity can help introduce the idea of boundaries and understanding why certain people may be ranked differently. It can also highlight the trusted adults in the child’s life.

Activities to help children understand trust

You could also create an activity using three or four circles on the ground made with tape. Ask the child to stand in the inner circle. Then ask them about the people they would place in the closest circle to them and why. Continue the discussion until each circle has been explored.

This can provide an opportunity to explore how the child understands the different people in their lives, while also helping them think about the risks of trusting people they do not know.

Talking about stranger safety

There are many different ways you can help children understand the risks associated with strangers and how to stay safe. The following website may be helpful for further guidance: tusla.ie/parenting-24-seven/6-12-years/child-safety-practices-reduce-injury/how-to-teach-my-child-about-stranger-danger/. This information is relevant for parents and carers in Ireland and is provided by Tusla’s Parenting24seven resource.

Online safety and strangers

The online world plays a big role in children’s lives today. It is important that we highlight the risks of communicating with strangers online.

Children should understand that strangers can attempt to contact them online as well as in person. It is helpful to teach them to keep personal details private, avoid adding or communicating with people they do not know, and to tell a trusted adult if someone unfamiliar contacts them online. Children should also know how to block and report users if needed.

The following Irish websites provide useful information about online safety:

• webwise.ie/
• cybersafekids.ie/

Additional support

We also offer a Parent Support Line from 9 am to 1 pm, Monday to Friday, if you would like to speak with someone directly. The phone number is 01 522 4300.

We hope that some of the information above has been helpful to you, and we wish you the best going forward.

Take care,

Robyn