Every 40 seconds someone’s son or daughter is reported missing, totaling over 800,000 missing children in the United States each year. Whether you are in a crowded shopping mall, amusement park or even a neighborhood park, as a parent, turning around and not seeing your child induces instant panic and a sinking feeling in your stomach.

There are a few steps parents can take to help shorten the time it takes to locate their child should he or she ever go missing. The first step is to remain as calm as possible and other tips that can help include:

* Teach your children to look for other moms or dads to ask for help if they ever get separated from you.
* Practice memorizing last name, address, home phone and cell phone numbers with your children by turning them into a rhyme or pneumonic device so the child can recall it when they are scared.
* Check around your home in places that would be easy to hide or places where young children might get trapped.
* Keep a current photograph on hand.
* Notify local law enforcement and the media and report where they were last seen, what they were wearing and other key pieces of identifying information.
* Contact the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) on their toll-free telephone number: 1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678).
* Consider renting or purchasing a GPS locator for your child that can notify you if you child leaves home and allows them to send you an SOS message if they are in danger.