A girl about 10 years old, one of my kung fu students, was outside playing with her little brother and a neighbor boy. Someone walked up and told them they were their friend, asked if they wanted candy and grabbed her. She fought him off by stomping his toes, kicking his shins and screaming loudly. Then they ran inside. They sicko booked it down the street, got into his car and left. This happened last summer and we talked about it in class, I had HER tell the story to the rest of the kids in class. I regularly do anti-kidnapping drills with all the kids I teach. It's amazing how embarrassed some kids are to be loud, even in a familiar setting with someone they trust. They automatically think that even if they don't practice correctly in class, they'll do it correctly if the situation ever happens. One of the notoriously quiet/submissive ones was my sister-in-law, 9 years old. This is not the case. If they can't do it in a safe place, what makes them think that they'll be able to yell and fight properly when they're overwhelmed with an adult PLUS the adrenaline dump? They won't. The challenge is changing their idea.
