Joan Derrick

Joshua and Stranger Danger Joan Derrick

Joshua is waiting for his mum to collect him from school as lessons are finished for the day.

He finds himself in a stranger danger situation as he impulsively runs onto the footpath waving goodbye to his friend who is leaving for home with his mum. Before he can regain the safety of the schoolyard, he is stopped by a policeman who informs Joshua his mum is in hospital, having had an accident. Being very concerned about his mum, he is about to leave with the policeman. Instantly his soul buddy, Tav is between him and the policeman, shielding him - visible only to Joshua. Tav makes him aware this is not normal behaviour for a policeman; reminding him of the school rules about not leaving the school grounds without his parent; urging him to run to the safety of the schoolyard; asking him to note what the policeman was doing.

Joshua gets a very big fright and runs to his teacher who alerts the School Principal. Checking with the Police Department confirms that his mum has not had an accident. The police officer states, "No policeman had been sent to the school." With Tav's help, Joshua is able to give the policeman a description of the man and the vehicle he is driving.

Joshua's mum and teacher realise the difficulty young children would have in knowing who to trust from looking at appearances; especially of people they are taught to trust. They realise there is a need to teach children how to look at a person's behaviour; to teach them what is normal behaviour for all people, including police officers and others whom they normally trust.

After the incident is resolved, Tav visits Joshua telling him how to recognise his intuition and listen to his body language - both are early warning signs of danger.