Defense with a group of youngsters

[shesulsa]

Some of us take groups of children around with us on various occasions, or on a daily basis - some on field trips for school, some on outings with youth groups, etcetera.

What is your game plan for having a handful of adults and a larger group of children should something big happen?

How do you keep the group of children safe as well as you adults?
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[Martial Tucker]

I have been both a coach, and a Scoutmaster for many years, so I've had more than my share of shepherding.....

First thing I would do, is use the "buddy system".
Partner each kid up with one other, and tell them they are to keep together
ALWAYS, and look out for each other.

How old are they? If they are old enough for cell phones, make sure you have each kid's number, and make sure that each "buddy team" has each other's number.

Ideally, you should have 1 adult for every 6-8 kids.
Assign each adult their share of "buddy teams" to watch, in addition to their
overall adult responsibilities.

Make sure all adults have each others cell phone numbers.

Instruct ANYONE in the group that, if they find themselves separated from the rest, they are to STAY PUT. Do not leave with ANYONE other than a police officer. If they are too young for cell phones, and see a police officer, they are to tell him/her they are lost.

Each kid should be issued a list of cell phone numbers to reach any adult in the group. Tell them you will re-collect the list when you return home, so they MUST take care of the list.

You should have health insurance info, and treatment permission documents
from a parent of each kid, as well as a contact/cell # for at least one parent/kid


If you are going in the wilderness, it gets much more complicated.....


EDIT: Not sure I addressed your question about something "big" happening, but it would depend on what happened

 

[Kacey]

Nice list. I would also add the following:

Have a meeting place in case people get separated (intentionally or otherwise - do you know how far you can get from the rest of the school group in a zoo?). Include a time to meet to get back on the bus. For example, for school trips we always meet where the bus dropped us off; for non-school trips, information booths or entrances are always good.

Have a list of who is there - and check it before you let people loose, and before you leave. There was a field trip from my middle school to the high school to see a play, and they left a girl at the high school... luckily for all, she went to the office and asked for help, and was given a ride back by the School Resource Officer.

If you are walking somewhere, put an adult at each end, and some in the middle. It really doesn't matter what age the kids are (see above - these kids were all 12 or 13, and they still lost one).

Make sure all the students know their own phone number, at least.

Do NOT put name tags on the students; children (no matter what you tell them) will often trust someone who calls them by name.

Have the adults (not the kids) wear something readily identifiable - a shirt with a logo, a name tag with a certain design, anything - so a child who is separated from the group knows who to approach.

Don't panic if someone is missing - and don't neglect the rest of the group to go look for the missing child; someone MUST stay with the kids and supervise.

 

[Drac]

All EXCELLENT suggestions...

 

[Martial Tucker]

I would add to my earlier list that, if your outings are going to be fairly regular going forward, at least one, and preferably two adults should be CPR certified, and some basic first aid training (Heimlich, heat stroke, bee stings, etc.) would be a really good idea, too.