Injury Prevention and Sports Safety
Child safety is the chief concern for parents and a safe environment allows students to flourish and grow, and it is a prerequisite for effective learning.
According to Safe Kids Worldwide, unintentional injury is the leading killer of children between the ages of one and 14.
Many injuries and deaths can be prevented by teaching parents and children simple ways to avoid the most common risks at home (fires, burns, scalds and poison) and at play (playground).
Learn More
- Safe and Healthy Kids and Teens (CDC): Helps parents guide kids in making choices that will lead to healthier lives.
- Fall Prevention (Safe Kids Worldwide). Tools and additional resources to teach and remind families about preventing falls. Includes link to Fall Prevention Center for Excellence.
- Fires, Burns and Scalds Prevention (Safe Kids Worldwide). Tips and resources to help parents and caregivers protect their families from fires, burns and scalds.
- Preventing Bicycle, Skateboard and Other Wheeled-Sport Injuries (Safe Kids Worldwide). Tips for how to protect children from injury while bicycling, skateboarding or participating in other wheeled sports.
- Sports safety tips (Safe Kids Worldwide). Includes a sports safety checklist, concussion guide and information about preparticipation physical exams, hydration and more.
- National Action Plan for Sports Safety (Youth Sports Safety Alliance). A plan urging schools to adopt safety measures that protect student athletes from injury or illness.
Students Deserve a Safe Environment
A founding principle of National PTA’s mission is to promote the safety and well-being of all children and youth.
All students and educators have a right to attend schools that are safe and conducive to learning and achievement, yet schools are experiencing increasingly frequent incidents that are having a devastating, long-term impact on students, parents, educators, and the community.
School safety is a multi-faceted issue with no one clear solution for each community.
National PTA believes:
- The most effective day-to-day school climate is gun-free, which includes not arming teachers and administrators; however,
- All efforts to address school safety must be locally determined, collaborative, and specifically include input from students, parents, and families and take into account a variety of factors including the physical and psychological safety of students.
Read the full National PTA position statement on Safe and Supportive Schools.
What You Can Do
It is imperative that families are actively engaged in creating safe and supportive schools for kids. National PTA has developed resources for parents and PTAs to support you in becoming effective, successful school safety stakeholders.
- 20 Questions Every Parent Should Ask: Helps parents have a conversation with their School Principals about school safety policies and procedures, preventative resources for students, families and school personnel, and what type of communication channels in place for families and students.
- Mobilizing Family Stakeholders: Provides PTA with resources to get in the know about school safety, host a school safety forum and advocate to decision makers about school safety.
- Webinar: School Safety – Mobilizing for Change: Focuses on action – what family members and PTAs can do to ensure that schools are safe and supportive places for our children to learn.
Additional Resources for Families and PTAs
Know the Signs (Sandy Hook Promise): teaches kids, parents, teachers, and community members to recognize warning signs like social isolation and behavioral shifts – and how to report them.
Be Safe and Sound in School (National Safety Council): mobilizes parents, school administrators, elected officials, policymakers, and students to take action on the issue of school safety and security.
Framework for Safe and Successful Schools (National Association of School Psychologists): provides evidence-based recommendations for improving school safety.
Guide for Developing High Quality School Emergency Operations Plans (FEMA): a guide for developing, implementing, and continually refining a school EOP.
Parents for Safe Schools (Safe and Sound Schools): designed for parents who want a more hands-on approach to school safety, from learning more to getting involved, or even becoming an advocate for school safety.
10 Things You Can Do to Prevent Violence in Your School Community
1. Talk to Your Children
Keeping the lines of communication open with your children and teens is an important step to keeping involved in their schoolwork, friends, and activities.
Ask open-ended questions and use phrases such as “tell me more” and “what do you think?” Phrases like these show your children that you are listening and that you want to hear more about their opinions, ideas, and how they view the world.
Start important discussions with your children—about violence, smoking, drugs, sex, drinking, death—even if the topics are difficult or embarrassing (read more about substance abuse). Don’t wait for your children or teens to come to you. View our tips for discussing difficult situations with your child.
2. Set Clear Rules and Limits for Your Children
Children need clearly defined rules and limits set for them so that they know what is expected of them and the consequences for not complying. When setting family rules and limits, be sure children understand the purpose behind the rules and be consistent in enforcing them.
Discipline is more effective if children have been involved in establishing the rules and, oftentimes, in deciding the consequences. Remember to be fair and flexible—as your children grow older, they become ready for expanded rights and changes in rules and limits. Show your children through your actions how to adhere to rules and regulations, be responsible, have empathy toward others, control anger, and manage stress.
3. Know the Warning Signs
Knowing what’s normal behavior for your son or daughter can help you recognize even small changes in behavior and give you an early warning that something is troubling your child.
Sudden changes—from subtle to dramatic—should alert parents to potential problems. These could include withdrawal from friends, decline in grades, abruptly quitting sports or clubs the child had previously enjoyed, sleep disruptions, eating problems, evasiveness, lying, and chronic physical complaints (stomachache or headaches). Learn more about emotional & mental health.
4. Don’t Be Afraid to Parent; Know When to Intervene
Parents need to step in and intervene when children exhibit behavior or attitudes that could potentially harm them or others. And you don’t have to deal with problems alone—the most effective interventions have parent, school, and health professionals working together to provide on-going monitoring and support.
5. Stay Involved in Your Child’s School
Show your children you believe education is important and that you want your children to do their best in school by being involved in their education. Get to know your child’s teachers and help them get to know you and your child. Communicate with your child’s teachers throughout the school year, not just when problems arise.
Stay informed of school events, class projects, and homework assignments. Attend all parent orientation activities and parent-teacher conferences. Volunteer to assist with school functions and join your local PTA.
Help your children seek a balance between schoolwork and outside activities. Parents also need to support school rules and goals.
6. Join Your PTA or a Violence Prevention Coalition
According to the National Crime Prevention Council, the crime rate can decrease by as much as 30 percent when a violence prevention initiative is a community-wide effort. All parents, students, school staff, and members of the community need to be a part of creating safe school environments for our children. Many PTAs and other school-based groups are working to identify the problems and causes of school violence and possible solutions for violence prevention. View National PTA’s Position Statement on Gun Safety and Violence Prevention
7. Help to Organize a Community Violence Prevention Forum
Parents, school officials, and community members working together can be the most effective way to prevent violence in our schools.
8. Help Develop A School Violence Prevention and Response Plan
School communities that have violence prevention plans and crisis management teams in place are more prepared to identify and avert potential problems and to know what to do when a crisis happens.
The most effective violence prevention and response plans are developed in cooperation with school and health officials, parents, and community members. These plans include descriptions of school safety policies, early warning signs, intervention strategies, emergency response plans, and post-crisis procedures.
9. Know How to Deal With the Media in a Crisis
Good public relations and media relations start with understanding how the media works and what they expect from organizations that issue press releases, hold press conferences, and distribute media kits.
10. Work to Influence Lawmakers
Writing an editorial for the local newspaper, holding a petition drive, speaking before a school board meeting, or sending a letter to your legislator can be effective ways to voice your opinion and gain support from decision makers for violence prevention programs in your community. Working with other concerned parents, teachers, and community members, you can influence local, state and even federal decisions that affect the education, safety, and well-being of our children.
Advocate for violence prevention and write your officials.
Additional Resources
- Top Tips for Discussing Difficult Situations with Your Child
- What You Can Do about Substance Abuse (Watch our new Webinar on Vaping)
- Learn the Facts about Emotional Health and How to Address Mental Health in Schools
- View National PTA’s Position Statement on Gun Safety and Violence Prevention
- Take Action and Write Your Members of Congress
Reduce the Dangers of Distracted Driving
Traffic crashes are the leading cause of death for teenagers in America, with teens involved in three times as many fatal crashes as all other drivers. This is caused by inexperience and immaturity, combined with:
- Speed
- Drinking and driving and drug use
- Not wearing seat belts
- Distracted driving (e.g., cell phone use, loud music, other teen passengers)
- Drowsy driving
- Driving at night
What You Can Do
A Liberty Mutual Insurance survey showed that 69% of parents of teen drivers practice at least two dangerous or distracting behaviors while driving. You can help reduce the dangers of distracted driving—especially texting while driving—by setting a good example of safe driving.
- Discuss texting with your kids. Look at your phone bill to understand how often your kids text. Bring up the dangers of texting while driving with your teens.
- When you know your teen might be driving, don’t call. When you do call, ask your teen if he or she is driving. If the answer is yes, ask your teen to pull over and call you back.
Learn More
- Countdown2Drive (Safe Kids Worldwide). Resources to help families build passenger agreements and set a tone of mutual respect as younger teens approach driving age.
- Distraction.gov (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration): Educates Americans about the dangers of distracted driving.
- Teen Safety (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration: Provides parents, caregivers, teachers, and safety advocates with the tools to help teen drivers get a safe start on the road.
For a useful set of resources, please refer to the Digital Wellness page on University of Washington’s site
What is Digital Wellness?
Digital wellness is being aware of how you spend your time online. It includes being mindful of your online presence and footprint; how you interact with social networks, games and apps; the ways you protect your identity; and how you balance your time online within your daily life.
Understanding digital wellness helps families play, learn, connect and grow together. As our world becomes increasingly digital, the solution doesn’t lie in eliminating technology. It’s about making technology work for you and actively evaluating how you use your devices to, ultimately, better yourself and the world around you.
