Summer is nearing its end, and that means children across America will soon be hearing that first bell that kicks off the new school year. That makes some kids happy and other kids sad, but regardless, every child needs to understand that safety and home security take top priority. There are too many potential hazards out there to give this anything less than your full attention. Look below for tips to help ensure your child’s safety this school year.

Perform Some Bus Stop Recon: No matter whether it’s your kid’s first or hundredth ride, it pays to spend a few minutes scouting out the place where he or she will wait for the bus. If there is a walk from your home involved, take the time for a practice run.

Replay Home Security Basics: Now is as good a time as ever to go over your expectations for keeping your home protected. If your child is old enough to operate the ADT home alarm, have them show you how to do it. This is especially important if the child will be left alone.

Talk to Neighbors: Have a discussion with the folks living around you about expectations for the new school year. Consider setting up a schedule to take care of each others’ kids if an adult isn’t always available in both homes.

Lay Out Rules for Older Children: Kids in high school and college represent a whole different set of challenges. Sit your child down and have a frank talk about the dangers involved with operating a motor vehicle, especially in cases where alcohol is involved. Parents are the number one deterrent for bad behavior, so take the few minutes to speak to your kids.

As the dog days of August turn into cooler September rain showers, make sure your children are safe. Practice these home safety and school safety tips. There’s nothing more precious than their well-being, and you should take every step possible to ensure it.

Have you ever heard the expression, “a team is only as strong as its weakest link”? While not universally true, it certainly applies to home security. By banding together with your neighbors, you can greatly bolster your own property’s protection. Along with an ADT home alarm system, this can be one of the best ways to keep your family safe. Here are some tips for getting your neighborhood watch group off the ground.

Start Small: Talk to your neighbors to the immediate left and right. This is the first step to increasing the strength of your neighborhood’s defense system. Discuss mutual expectations and concerns, and delegate responsibilities.

Expand Across the Neighborhood: Now that you have the backing of more homeowners, take the campaign further by going door to door. Don’t be discouraged if you get rejected from a few homes on your way-it’s their loss. You can also print up flyers if you would prefer to move things forward from a distance.

Home Security Meetings: Once the organization has been developed, hold a monthly meeting to talk about potential threats. Encourage your neighbors to openly discuss home security issues.

As a unit, your neighborhood can protect itself against potential intruders. By banding together, you can supplement stronger locks, a home alarm system, and other individual home security measures.

Packing for safety is key. It is important to always take along things like a personal alarm, a door alarm, cash carriers and passport jackets.  It is also important to keep everything important, such as money and documents, close to your body where they’re harder for someone to steal. Not in an inside pocket or fanny pack, but a money belt or harness that is worn inside your clothing. Especially when traveling overseas.

For example, a woman in the Paris train station sat her fanny pack with her and her husband’s passports, their traveler’s cheques, and their cell phone all on top of her suitcase. When she turned sideways to bend down beside the suitcase and look inside their backpack, everything was stolen in the blink of an eye. A busy train station with people walking by and bumping into one another was all it took for someone to casually pick up the fanny pack and leave my friends stranded in a foreign country without cash and their passports.  They hadn’t even purchased their train ticket yet, so they couldn’t get to the American Embassy. Their first mistake was putting everything they had in one central location. They should have each had their own passports on their bodies.  Each of them should have had money and traveler’s cheques hidden on their bodies. Their cell phones that had all of their phone numbers stored inside them should have been separated inside luggage and a duffel bag, and they should have had a back-up system like a written copy of emergency numbers.

Personal alarms can protect you if you’re out and someone tries to mug you or if you’re in a situation where you simply feel uncomfortable. By pulling a wire out of a handheld device, an ear piercing alarm is emitted that will scare off a potential attacker and attract attention to you. A door alarm will do the same, except it is like a bumper placed at the foot of the door that will sound if someone tries to gain entry.

If you go on vacation, especially to a foreign country where you might not be fluent in the language, be careful about what you pack. Make sure you’re taking the safety items you need to make your vacation a success. Do it right and your only worries will be how much stuff you lug home!

As for the safety of your home while you are away, ADT home security has been protecting American homes for over one hundred years. Their monitoring professionals are quick to respond. Remember to travel safe, and keep your home security level up while you travel.

Your family’s safety is priceless. If you thought that home security was beyond your budget and unreachable, you’re plain wrong. There are numerous ways to protect your loved ones without breaking the bank. Check out some ways to bolster your home security inexpensively below.

Change Up Your Locks: For less than 50 dollars, you can swap out old locks for new. Think how many neighbors, handymen, and dogwalkers you’ve given keys in the past couple of years. Even dependable people have moments of weakness; prevent a break-in by making those keys worthless.

Add a Home Alarm System: If you were under the impression that a home security system was out of reach, think again. ADT offers great deals on great home protection, with freebies including installation and equipment. For less than a one hundred dollar initial outlay of cash, you can set your house up with the safety net your family deserves.

Get Your Hands Dirty Gardening: Who would have thought that Mother Nature could make your family safer? By obscuring windows with shrubbery and adding rose bushes to low entrance points, you can keep potential burglars guessing. You don’t need to hire a professional landscaper; head to the garden supply store yourself, and spend a pleasant weekend installing some gorgeous new features.

Start a Neighborhood Watch Group: This one’s free: talk to the folks on your street, and see if they’re interested in starting a neighborhood watch group. If you’re the proud owner of an ADT home alarm system, let them know just how satisfied you are. A neighborhood filled with properly secured homes will send potential intruders scurrying on to the next block.

Improving home security should be a priority for any concerned property owner. With these easy tips and a home security system from ADT, you’re house or apartment will stay protected all the time.

For the ultimate in home security, supplement your home alarm system with a set of closed circuit television cameras. Commonly referred to as CCTV, these high-powered devices allow you to monitor everything happening both inside and outside of your home. Having the ability to spot a potential problem before it becomes a disaster can save lives.

With recent significant leaps in technology, CCTV is now an even more effective way to protect your property. Going on vacation any time soon? With a CCTV system from your home security provider, you can keep track of the situation from any computer with a broadband internet connection. Take a brief look each day; if anything seems out of the ordinary, you can immediately contact a home security professional to investigate and decide whether further action is needed.

Most experts will agree that home security cameras are one of the most effective ways to combat potential break-ins. Having the ability to scope out your property before exiting the front door is a sure way to beat back the potential for intrusion.

If you’ve been thinking about upgrading your home security system, a CCTV setup is the next natural evolution. Offering great protection at a very reasonable cost, closed circuit cameras give you an eye into the outside world from the comfort and safety of your own home.

Summer is winding its way down, and that means Labor Day is quickly approaching. As always, June and July flew by, and Memorial Day and the 4th of July are distant memories. You’ve kept your family safe throughout the hot days and nights, and now’s no time to quit. Here are some home security tips for maintaining that same level of safety for the upcoming Labor Day holiday.

Home Alarm - Don’t Forget to Set It: Your ADT home security system has monitored your home while you were away all summer long. When you go away this Labor Day, make sure you don’t forget to arm it. Burglars know just as well as you do that summer’s last harrah means vacant houses waiting to be picked off.

Fireworks – Don’t forget about Fire Safety: Have some fireworks left over from July 4th? Be careful when lighting them off, especially if you live in a dry area. In many parts of the United States, this summer hasn’t brought much rain, which means the risk of fire is greater than at any other point. Your home security depends on the wise choices you make, so take care and don’t play with fire.

Don’t Forget About Mother Nature: Folks in hurricane-prone areas should stay cautious, as Labor Day falls right into the prime time for late summer tempests. Have an emergency action plan ready, in case disaster strikes. In any case, you can feel secure about your home’s continued protection against intrusion: ADT’s four interconnected command centers mean that even if one location goes down, the system remains up and running.

Enjoy Labor Day, and remember to share these home security reminders with your family, keeping them safe as back to school gets closer and Fall approaches.