Children enrolled in a local self-defense class yelled, "No!" as they blocked punches and moved across the floor. The determination in their voices seemed greater than might be expected from 10- and 11-year-olds.

Again and again they shouted, "No!" as a sign they do not want to become one of the frightening number of children abused and abducted each year across the country.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice's National Incidence Studies of Missing, Abducted, Runaway and Thrownaway Children, about 3,200 to 4,600 children are abducted each year.

A class offered by Community Education, 411 S. Fraser St., is an attempt to decrease those statistics.

Television coverage of crimes against children is one reason Bill Hillner registered his 10-year-old daughter Suzanne in the class.

"I think if we didn't watch the news and didn't know what is going on in other areas, we might not be aware of the need for a program like this," he said.

The six-week class costs $52 and meets in the Fairmount Elementary School cafeteria Saturday mornings.

Marilyn Mishock stayed to watch her son Joey as he learned to elbow stomachs and stomp on feet.

"He's here for his own sense of personal empowerment and so that he's capable of handling any crisis situation," Mishock said.

Joey, 11, had a different interpretation of why he is taking the class.

"My mom made me come," he said, but added that after taking the class, he feels safer and more prepared to handle dangerous situations.

Kelly Kemper, the class instructor, also teaches a class for students from seventh to ninth grade and classes for adults. Although this is the first time she has taught pupils as young as those in her Saturday classes, she said it is time someone did.

"It's better too early than too late," Kemper said. "Kids at that age already have reason to be concerned."

For a rigorous hour and a half, Kemper and her assistant drill moves into the students' heads. Despite their protective padding, the instuctors take occasional blows to the stomach as students practice escaping from them. But repetition is essential, Kemper said.

"When they are in a dangerous situation, I don't expect them to remember their names, let alone hard moves," she said. "So we're trying to teach them something that they are going to memorize."

Although they practice moves designed to escape from people, Kemper stresses ways to make sure her students won't need to use them. Her suggestions are as simple as staying in well-lit places and keeping a safe distance from strangers.

"The best way to defend ourselves is not to get away, but to avoid trouble in the first place," Kemper said.