When someone mentions child safety, the first thing that pops into most people’s minds is keeping them safe from abuse. This is understandable. After all, every parent’s worst nightmare is that his or her child will be abused.
Of course, making your children aware of that danger, and teaching them how to respond is important. It is vital. However, so is educating your children about how to avoid accidents is just as important.
Every year, in the US, 3.4 million children end up at A&E because of accidents they have at home. So, it is also important to teach your children about spotting danger in the family home. Here are a few tips to help you to do that without scaring them too much.
Point Out the Dangers
After you have identified the dangers in your home and taken the steps you need to minimize them the next step is to start to educate your children about home safety. Pointing out potential dangers to them and the consequences of ignoring them equips them with the knowledge they need to avoid having an accident while they are in other people’s homes. Naturally, not everyone fits safety features or is alert to how to make a space kid friendly, and avoid accidents, so your children do need to be alert to danger.
Make Learning About Safety Fun
The best way to do this is to make it as much fun as possible. Playing games that teach kids about safety are a great way to do exactly that. This page contains some fantastic resources, which are all free to use.
Highlight the Dangers in Your Home
Kids get excited. When they do it’s easy for them to forget what you have told them, so anything you can do to remind them of the danger helps. It is well worth investing in a few home safety signs to draw attention to certain dangers. For example, putting up a sign to remind the kids not to run around the pool area could save them from slipping on wet tiles.
Be Consistent
When it comes to home safety, it is important to be consistent. If you want your children to stay away from the fire when it is on, or lit, you need to do the same. For example, no matter how tempting it is do not stand in front of the fire to warm your hands.
Teach Your Children What To Do In An Emergency
Nobody likes to think about home fires. However, it is important not to ignore that possibility and to be ready for such an event.
Teaching your children to stay low in the event of a fire could save their lives. The majority of people that die in house fires are not burnt. Often, they die because they inhale smoke. Of course, you need to be careful about not scaring your children, but must not be shy about having this type of conversation. Take the time to check that they understand, and remind them of your emergency drills on a regular basis.
