Resources for Parents

IF YOU ARE HURTING YOUR CHILD , SUSPECT YOUR CHILD IS BEING HURT OR KNOW A CHILD WHO NEEDS HELP IN FLORIDA, PLEASE CALL THE ABUSE HOTLINE AT 1-800-96-ABUSE (1-800-962-2873 OR TDD:1-800-453-5145). You can also fax a report to 1-800-914-0004, or submit a report online.

These reporting systems are provided for your convenience to report non-emergency concerns of abuse and/or neglect. An emergency situation occurs when a child appears to face immediate risk of abuse/neglect that is likely to result in death or serious harm (without intervention). If your concerns meet the definition of an emergency situation: FIRST, call 911, SECOND contact the Florida Abuse Hotline at 1-800-962-2873. DO NOT fax or submit a web report.

Making a report is required to get the child and family help. Abused children (and families) can and do HEAL!

Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Resources

What Parents/Caregivers Need to Know About Child Abuse

Signs and Symptoms of Abuse and Neglect

How to Handle Disclosures of Abuse and Neglect

Developing a Safety Plan with Your Child

Reporting Child Abuse - General Information

Internet Safety and Online Safety Pledge

Additional Safety and Prevention Resources and Links

Parenting Help

Parents Anonymous - Parents Anonymous provides parents a caring, supportive environment where they can learn new parenting strategies and create long lasting positive changes in their families.
American Academy of Pediatrics - This website contains information on child health and mental health issues such as autism, obesity, and stress. There is a specific tab for parents, which includes information on children ranging from prenatal and detecting abnormalities to young adult and the transition from high school to college.
Pinwheels for Prevention 2011 Parent Resource Book - This booklet provides information about child devleopment from birth through the teen years; tips for creating a stimulating and nuturing environment for children; tips for managing challenges and contact information for community resources.

General Safety and Prevention Information

Safe Start Center - The Safe Start Center website provides resources to help when children have been exposed to violence. It includes warning signs of exposure, how adults can help and additional resources, including the following tipsheet: Tips for Parents and Other Caregivers
Safe Steps to Protect Florida's Children, A Parent's Guide to Online Safety, Child Abduction and Runaway Issues - Published by the Office of the Attorney General and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, SAFESTEPS gives parents tools to protect their children. It covers prevention strategies, internet safey, how to recognize risks, text message and chat room dictionary, basic safety rules and several other guides to keeping your children safe in a variety of situations.
Violence Prevention from the CDC - The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has an excellent page on Violence Prevention that covers Child Maltreatment, Youth Violence, Bullying, Principles of Prevention and many other topics that relate to violence, its effects and prevention techniques.

Cellphone and Internet Safety

What Parents Should Know About Cellphone and Internet Safety
Netsmartz has Internet Safety Information for parents from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
iKeepSafe is a website with resources for parents including how to teach your kids about online safety!
Wired Kids is a website with information about internet safety and cybercrime.

Child Sexual Abuse Prevention

Darkness to Light is a national nonprofit headquartered in Charleston, South Carolina whose mission is to empower people to prevent child sexual abuse. Darkness to Light's Stewards of Children is the leading adult-based child sexual abuse prevention training program; third-party evaluated and shown to increase awareness and change attitudes and behaviors. In addition, Darkness to Light assists communities with implementing and sustaining grassroots community based child sexual abuse prevention initiatives.

Bullying Intervention and Prevention

StopBullying.gov is a great resource with information on recognizing, stopping and preventing bullying. Their website also has tons of printable tipsheets available.
The Florida Department of Education has an entire page dedicated to bullying prevention with definitions and tons of resources to help parents prevent and deal with bullying.