I would be very cautious about shutting them in the coop with our summer heat... unless you are blessed with very cool weather. What I would do is: allow them access to a secure run during their acclimation period. Put a good cover over the run so they can't escape out of the top. Even if you intend to free range them full time, it's a good idea to have a run available for: when predators come calling, when you need to train or re-train the hens to the nest (so they don't make you do an Easter egg hunt in the yard), when acclimating new birds to the coop in the summer heat.
Your run does not need to be elaborate. You can put one up in a day with some T posts, some fencing, and a covering of bird netting. If you want to make it predator proof, you will need to get a bit more elaborate with a buried skirt around the bottom. a bit of framing. While welded hdw. cloth is recommended, it would be cost prohibitive for the size run I have built. So, it's 1" chicken wire with buried skirt, and bird netting top (during non snow months.).
I would keep them confined to coop/run for a week. You may have to put them in the coop at dusk to give them the idea. They should be putting themselves to bed in the coop every night before you move on to step 2. You can start by letting them out of the run for an hour or so before dusk. They should put themselves to bed. You should be around to see that they have it figured it out. Gradually increase their outdoor time until you are leaving the run open all day.
While it's nice to have a cockerel as an alarm system, and for all of the other behaviors he brings to the flock, you can't expect him to keep his girls safe from predators. A good roo will help, but... most often, he sounds the alarm while leading the girls to safety. At night, he is as helpless as his hens.
