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Ashley Hayes Reporting There are ways to teach your children how to be safe from strangers.
There is a self-defense progam designed by Utah police officers geared specifically for kids. The program is called "Resisting Aggression Defensively." It's coined RAD kids.
It was developed here in Utah and is taught in thousands of schools nationwide.
R.A.D Kids Principles:
- Hit Hard
- Yell Loud
- Run Fast
RAD is designed for children ages 5-10.
RAD instructors teach children how to fight a stranger, and the best places to hit a kidnapper in order to get away.
Without scaring the children, RAD Kids empowers elementary age students with the knowledge and the tactics to fight back.
Kaylee Breeding, Plain Elementary School Student: "I think it's really important, because at any time somebody could come and snatch you."
Alyson Larson, Rad Kids Coordinator: "Eighty-five percent of the time, children are grabbed. So you have to give them something to be able to get away from that."
Often kids are taught to be polite and never to hit. That's why recognizing a threatening person and a dangerous situation are emphasized so strongly in the RAD curriculum.
Parents may want to check with their individual school districts to find out if children are receiving instruction on self defense.
