Lindee Phillips

Child Abuse Prevention and Reporting Plan

In 2013, Click, Karkos, and Robertson identify and explain child abuse as follows:

Several categories of child abuse are recognized.

 Physical abuse: a child is physically injured by other than accidental means.
 Physical neglect: failure to provide a child with adequate food, shelter, clothing,
protection, supervision, and medical or dental care.
 Emotional abuse: excessive verbal assaults, continuous negative responses, and
constant family discord may add up to emotional abuse.
 Emotional deprivation: deprivation suffered by children when their parents fail to supply
normal experiences that help children to feel loved, wanted, and secure.
 Sexual abuse and exploitation: any sexual activity between an adult and child (pg. 387).

In 2013, Click et al., also identify many warning signs for each type of abuse. They are listed here.
Physical abuse signs:
 Burns: burns in places that would not be expected as the result of accident. (e.g.
buttocks, shoulder blades, abdomen)
 Bruises: multiple bruises with different colors indicating various stages of healing;
bruises on many parts of the body, including the genitals.
 Linear marks: wraparound marks made by a strap, belt, or electrical cord.
 Fractures: any fracture in an infant under 12 months should be suspect (pg. 388).

Physical neglect signs:

 Food is inadequate or not sufficiently nutritious.
 The child lacks proper clothing for the weather, or clothing is unclean.
 The child lacks proper medical or dental care.
 A young child is left at home or unsupervised for any period of time (pg. 389).

Emotional abuse signs:

 The child is withdrawn, depressed, or apathetic.
 The child “acts out” or is often disruptive.
 The child is overly rigid, is afraid to miss behave, or fails to do what is expected.
 The child shows signs of emotional disturbance, such as repetitive movements or lack of
verbal or physical communication with others (pg. 389).

Emotional deprivation signs:

 The child is not able to do things that would be expected of the age level for example,
walking or talking.
 The child is frequently aggressive or shows other antisocial behaviors.
  The child is abnormally withdrawn or sad, or does not respond to others.
 The child constantly seeks attention from any adult, even strangers, who come into the
school (pg. 389).

Sexual abuse signs:

 The child has bruising or inflammation of the anus or the genitals.
 There is a discharge or blood in the child’s underwear.
 The child is particularly seductive with adults, touching their breasts or genitals.
 The child seems fearful of an adult or is afraid to talk about that adult.
 The child is the victim of other kinds of abuse (pg. 389-390).

Idaho legislature states:

‘Abused’ means any case in which a child has been the victim of:
(a) Conduct or omission resulting in skin bruising, bleeding, malnutrition, burns, fracture of any
bone, subdural hematoma, soft tissue swelling, failure to thrive or death, and such condition or
death is not justifiably explained, or where the history given concerning such condition or death
is at variance with the degree or type of such condition or death, or the circumstances indicate
that such condition or death may not be the product of an accidental occurrence; or
(b) Sexual conduct, including rape, molestation, incest, prostitution, obscene or pornographic
photographing, filming or depiction for commercial purposes, human trafficking… or other
similar forms of sexual exploitation harming or threatening the child’s health or welfare or
mental injury to the child…
‘Neglected’ means a child:
(a)  Who is without proper parental care and control, or subsistence, medical or other care or
control necessary for his well-being because of the conduct or omission of his parents, guardian
or other custodian or their neglect or refusal to provide them; however, no child whose parent
or guardian chooses for such child treatment by prayers through spiritual means alone in lieu of
medical treatment shall be deemed for that reason alone to be neglected or lack parental care
necessary for his health and well-being; or
(b)  Whose parents, guardian or other custodian are unable to discharge their responsibilities to
and for the child and, as a result of such inability, the child lacks the parental care necessary for
his health, safety or well-being; or
(c)  Who has been placed for care or adoption in violation of law (Idaho, n.d.).

Idaho’s law states that all citizens have the obligation to report abuse, along with “[any] physician,
nurse, resident, intern, coroner, school teacher, day care personnel, and social worker” (Reuters, 2019).

According to Click et al., (2013) there are many different contexts which can lead to child abuse.
They talk about some circumstances which can lead to child abuse. Some of these circumstances include
those who were abused as children, those who have little or no support system, those who experience
stress because of various circumstances, those who have difficulty controlling angry behavior, and those
who have unrealistic expectations of children’s behavior (Click et al., 2013). Those who were abused
when they were children may not have important knowledge or skills concerning parenting, and
therefore may resort back to what their parents did when difficult times arise. Those with little support
may not have the means necessary to properly take care of children. For example, a single mother with
no support system might be more tempted to leave her children home alone, in order for her to attend
a job interview. Those who experience high stress due to divorce, unemployment or unwanted
pregnancy may be more vulnerable to angry outbursts leading to unnecessary punishments. Those who
have difficulty controlling angry behavior may be more likely to resort to child abuse because anger
often makes people think irrationally. Parents may have unrealistic expectations of children’s behavior
because they lack education about child development. These parents may find themselves in situations
where they lose patience with children because they expect more mature behavior, even though
children are incapable of this expected behavior due to their young age.

I, as the program administrator, will do my best provide support to all parents. My first focus is
to be a source of support for them by being their friend and offering my help anytime outside program
hours. I will be able to do this since my program will be very small. Sometimes just another friend and
smiling face can provide parents with more patience with their children and prevent abuse. My staff and
I will be examples of how to effectively interact with and guide children. Parents will be encouraged to
participate in the program and will be able to come any time due to the open-door policy. I will also
provide training and education classes on child development, specifically developmentally appropriate
practice and the developmental stages/milestones. This will help my staff and families to have greater
understanding of why children act they way they do and provide guidance tools. By providing these
strategies to parents they will be aware of better ways to discipline children than physical punishment
and abuse. I will also send out weekly messages to all parents about the preschool’s most significant
moment or story. These moments or stories will highlight some of children’s most desirable qualities,
such as purity, curiosity, and their ability live in the moment. This will help parents have more patience
with their children by showing them that they are innocent souls who are learning how to live and
behave correctly.

To help my staff be prepared for dealing with situations of child abuse, I will have a training
meeting at the beginning of each preschool semester. My staff will be trained on how to identify child
abuse. I will ensure that my staff are familiar with the kinds and signs of abuse. My staff will be prepared
to respond appropriately when they initially suspect abuse and they will be trained on how to ask
questions that are appropriate, but not too probing for the child. The teachers will be trained to only ask
questions when needed, as asking too many questions may have a negative effect overall. Once child
abuse has been identified, the teachers who suspect child abuse will decide whether or not what they
have witnessed needs to be reported. In times when the abuse signs are very apparent, the teachers
may need some time for themselves to mentally process what they have experienced. To help teachers
process the situation of child abuse, the teachers will be allowed to take a couple days off of work. As
the administrator, I will strive to be a source of support and a listening ear for my teachers to help them
work through these emotions. When reporting is necessary, the teacher who witnessed the signs and
suspects abuse will be assigned to make the call. If the teacher is uncomfortable making the call, I will
offer to with them when they make the call. As the administer, I will follow up with the teacher about
making the call. If the teacher refuses to make the call and I have seen the signs, I will make the call
myself.
 References:

Click, P. M., Karkos, K. A., Robertson, C. (2013). Administration of Programs for Young Children:

Wadsworth Publishing

Idaho Statutes (n.d.) Retrieved from

https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/title16/t16ch16/sect16-1602/

Reuters, T. (2019). Idaho Child Abuse Laws. Retrieved from https://statelaws.findlaw.com/idaho-

law/idaho-child-abuse-laws.html