After talking to our children all year about being safe and not talking to strangers, there's one day each year we send them out onto the streets and tell them to knock on strangers' doors.

Halloween is upon us, and Patch wants to help everyone stay safe.

So we've created this map of the five registered sex offenders in Birmingham so you can choose whose door to knock on and whose not to — especially if your family is trick-or-treating in a new neighborhood, with friends or at Grandma's house.

To check out your neighborhood, zoom in or out of the map above. Click on a flag to get a specific address.

According to Birmingham Police Cmdr. Terry Kiernan, Birmingham has had very few problems with its registered sex offenders. The department randomly checks on each offender throughout the year, Kiernan said, though offenders are not required to check in before Halloween.

Individuals committing several crimes are required to be listed as sex offenders under the Sex Offenders Registration Act, Act 295 of 1994, and are listed on the Michigan Public Sex Offender Registry (PSOR) website.

There are three tiers of crimes an individual can be listed under.

• Tier 1 offenders must register for 15 years and verify annually.
• Tier 2 offenders must register for 25 years and verify bi-annually. 
• Tier 3 offenders must register for life and verify quarterly.

The Michigan State Police also have a system to send out an email alert when a registered sex offender moves near you.

Addresses, names and crimes listed on the map are provided by the Michigan State Police through the Michigan Public Sex Offender Registry.