Originally Posted By pattylennox Does anyone know the protocol for lost children at DL? My daughter got lost when she was little, but luckily I found her. We are going with 4 little boys and are thinking that wristbands with their names, etc. might be a good idea. Does anyone have any ideas about what to do as far as identification for children?
Originally Posted By x Pirate_Princess x How old are the kids? Both of my girls (6 and 3) know to immediately find a cast member ("someone with a name tag" no matter where they are) if they get lost. The CM will take them to Lost Children, which is near the First Aid Station (*in* the FA Station??). I think they may try and look for the parent in the immediate area. I've heard several suggestions for child identification: masking tape under their arm on the outside of their shirt with parent name and cell number. laminated luggage tag with parent name and cell number hooked onto a belt loop. I've also thought about getting my girls a button and writing info on the back of the button in a sharpie. The wristbands are a good idea. Just remember to make sure any information is not overly visible to general passers-by. I've made the luggage tags myself. Self sealing laminating paper from Walmart and business cards. Then I've put my info, my daughter's name onto it along with Disney stickers or clip art. Also, if the kids have any allergies or any other important info, that would be a good place to put it. Good luck!!
Originally Posted By amelia OH! Thanks Pirate Princess those are all GREAT ideas!!! Actually one of the boys is 11, so I think that he would be okay. The others are: 2 that are 6 and one that is 8. I have changed my log in name. Thanks again, SO MUCH!
Originally Posted By imadisneygal I just wanted to add to PiratePrincess' great ideas. At City Hall in Disneyland and at Guest Relations in DCA they offer stickers for kids where you can write your name, cell number, etc. and stick it on your kids' shirts or sweatshirts. Have fun!
Originally Posted By x Pirate_Princess x amelia, the 11 year old might be old enough to carry around a cell phone. Firefly makes a pre-paid cell for kids, or if you have an extra on your plan, or if they're not your kids, maybe the parent has an extra he can use). And also, at 11, I think they're not taken to Lost Children. They're taken to City Hall to leave a message (basically, he's treated as an adult). For the 11 and 8 year olds. Make a plan. Let them know that if they get separated from you, that you all are to meet at a specific spot (like the Partners statue at a specific character statuette). Show them the spot before you start your day. If you go over to DCA, find a new spot. Instruct them to NOT leave the park.
Originally Posted By amelia Thanks Pirate Princess and imadisneygal. I like the sticker idea too! Of course we would have to put it on the inside of their shirts. The boys are my grandsons. The 11 year old would know where we are staying, etc., and maybe we should have him memorize his Mom's cell number. Yes, making a plan is a good idea, but we made a plan with my daughter and she got so totally freaked out when she couldn't find us that she didn't do what she was told to do! I was SO lucky to find her myself so quickly - it was a teary eyed reunion I can tell you. Thanks again, SO MUCH - I really like the luggage tag idea too! I'll have to see what my daughters think. THANKS!
Originally Posted By Mrs ElderP I know that the security guards use their radios frequently. I've been near a reunion once. A parent had realized the child was missing and approached a security guard with a discription. The guard radioed it out, and now you have LOTS of eyes scanning. I saw the guard who spotted the child walk over and talk to her (The child wasn't upset, they were having fun looking at the ducks in the moat) and then radio it out. Security kept the child in place and withing moments a frantic parent was seen running over. Obviously identification stickers and such are a great idea, but the staff in place does know what they are doing and how to help.
Originally Posted By danyoung More than once I've been involved with reuniting a lost child with their parents. You usually see a kid wandering around with that "look" in the eyes, right on the verge of bursting into tears. It's very gratifying to help a kid out, find the nearest CM, and get the ball rolling. CM's are VERY well trained in how to handle a lost child. Course, when I was a kid I was getting "lost" all the time, either at DL or just about anywhere else, and it never bothered me in the least. I just thought I was on an adventure and I didn't have any pesky parents around to slow me down!
Originally Posted By dsnykid I got lost in the park when I was 6 or 7... I wasn't scared because my mom and dad always told me that if I couldn't find them to go straight to the center hub and sit down(This was before the partner's statues). I went there and sat down and within 5 minutes my mom and dad were there. They were worried, but proud that I had done what they had told me to. That was our standard plan no matter where we went - pick a place everyone could find and go there the minute you thought you were lost.
Originally Posted By FerretAfros Something that I've heard of (don't know how well it works) is writing your cell phone number directly on their arm in permanent marker. That way, there's no way that they can lose it, and it will be pretty obvious to anybody who finds them that it's there, even if the kids don't want to talk. It would be a little weird walking around with someone's phone number on your arm all day, but it seems like it would be the best thing if they did actually get lost. If you don't want to go that extreme (totally understandable), definately pick a meeting spot, and take them to it at the beginning of the day. The castle area is good because it's pretty centrally located, and anybody in the park will be able to give them directions there. Make sure to tell them that if they get lost, who they can ask for directions. Since it probably wouldn't be a good idea to have kids telling random strangers that they're all alone (it's Disneyland, but things still happen), tell them to ask a cast member for help. They should definately be willing to help out, and would know where your location is. Tell the kids that they're the people wearing the name tags, in case they can't figure out who is a cast member or who is a normal person.
Originally Posted By x Pirate_Princess x Another thing, if the "name tag" thing is too complicated for the younger ones, have them look for "costumes" or "mommies" as a mom, I am more than willing to help out another kid if they tell me they're lost.
Originally Posted By amelia Thanks again to all of you. You all have such wonderful ideas! I will talk to my daughters, and I'm sure that we can use MANY of these suggestions!
Originally Posted By retlawfan We use a business card with Mommy and Daddy's cell phone numbers placed in the child's back pocket. They also know to find a person in uniform as soon as they cannot find Mommy or Daddy. Also, if they can understand the advice, let them know to NOT go through the front gates unless they are with Mommy or Daddy. As a reminder that some people have mentioned. Do NOT write the child's name on anything that is attached to them and visible (buttons, stickers, etc). You don't want anyone to be able to call them by name who does not know them, and give them the sense that this person DOES know them.
Originally Posted By x Pirate_Princess x >>>Do NOT write the child's name on anything that is attached to them and visible (buttons, stickers, etc). <<< this proposes a dilemma for those birthday buttons writing the info on the back of the button, the part against the child and not visible should be OK. a cell number and adult name should be sufficient.
Originally Posted By retlawfan Oh yeah. And personally, I LOVE to get lost at DL. But that's another thread
Originally Posted By FerretAfros If you don't want to show their name, make sure to watch out for wearing Mouse Ears. While they are great, they also have your name on the back of them. I've been told that it makes for a great experience with the characters who "magically" know your name, which I think might be worth the risk (gotta judge by the kids and the odds that they would follow a stranger).
Originally Posted By andyll Our son wears a lanyard that typically holds our fastpasses and his autopia license. Last trip we put our cell phone numbers on a business card in there.
Originally Posted By x Pirate_Princess x I just bought some self-sealing laminating pouches at Target. They were on clearance, so I paid 48 cents for the regular ones (wallet size) and 98 cents for the ones with the holes for the strap for a luggage tag. I'm going to make ID tags for my girls for our next trip to Disneyland (which won't be until July for Alex and October with both of them). But I was thinking of making one for DD to keep in her backpack anyway.
