1) Have a plan.
2) Practice the plan.
3) USE the plan.
One good way to go about developing a home defense plan (to go with your other family emergency plans) is to take the NRA's Basic Personal Protection In The Home Course. The link below will provide a locator tool so you can see if the class is being taught near you. There's also a class description.
====================
http://www.nrahq.org/education/training/basictraining.asp
The NRA Basic Personal Protection In The Home Course teaches the basic knowledge, skills, and attitude essential to the safe and efficient use of a handgun for protection of self and family, and to provide information on the law-abiding individual’s right to self-defense. This is an eight-hour course. Students should expect to shoot approximately 100 rounds of ammunition. Students will learn basic defensive shooting skills, strategies for home safety and responding to a violent confrontation, firearms and the law, how to choose a handgun for self-defense, and continued opportunities for skill development. Students will receive the NRA Guide to the Basics of Personal Protection In The Home handbook, NRA Gun Safety Rules brochure, the Winchester/NRA Marksmanship Qualification booklet, and course completion certificate.
The NRA Basic Personal Protection In The Home Course participants must be law abiding, adults (at least 21 years old), and experienced shooters (shooters able to show mastery of the basic skills of safe gun handling, shooting a group, zeroing the firearm, and cleaning the firearm) to maximize what can be learned from this course. Proof of shooting experience can be one of the following: NRA Basic Pistol Course Certificate, NRA FIRST Steps Course Certificate, NRA pistol competitive shooting qualification card, military DD 214 with pistol qualification, or passing the Pre-Course Assessment.
==========================
There are other options, if the class is not available near you or at a time you can attend. The classroom portion of the class is available on DVD from
http://materials.nrahq.org/go/product.aspx?productid=ES 26840 , and the textbook can be ordered at
http://www.nrastore.com/nra/Product.aspx?productid=PB+01781 .
Circumstances will vary widely with family structure, legal jurisdictions, the floor plans of your house etc. But the basics apply across the board. There are certain things everyone needs to know to formulate a workable home defense plan. This class is a good guide to those things.
lpl