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How to Keep Your Child Healthy and Safe
What safety information should I teach my young child (ages 3-5) to help keep him or her safe?
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Call for help. Children as young as three should be taught how to contact the local emergency number in an emergency. Practice with a toy phone, teaching your preschooler how to dial 911 or the appropriate emergency service. Also teach children how to dial using a rotary phone, because grandparents or other relatives or friends may still have one. Children this age also should be able to dial their own home phone numbers. With incoming calls, they should know never to say that an adult is not present and never to give personal information over the phone.
Recite address and phone number. In an emergency, children also should be able to clearly state their name, address and phone number and, if possible, provide a brief description of the situation. Set up pretend emergencies and let your child practice responding. Never play with fire. Because fire is fascinating to small children, they need to be taught how dangerous it is. Tell little ones how painful it would be to be burned and stress never to play with matches or lighters. Train children to tell an adult right away if they find matches or a lighter. Buckle up! Make sure children understand why and how they should be properly restrained while in the car. For more information, see the Car-Seat Quiz in this segment. Use safety equipment. Life jackets, bike helmets, roller-skating safety gear, and other safety equipment for outdoor activities can help kids reduce their risk of injury when they're out having fun. Make the rules regarding their use simple:
No matter how short the bike ride, the helmet goes on; no matter how little time you'll be in the boat, the life jacket must be worn, and so on. Check First! The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children advises parents to establish the "Check First" rule with their children. David Shapiro, director of marketing and development, summarizes the rule as follows:
"Before you go anywhere with anyone, even someone you know, CHECK FIRST with an adult in whose care you are entrusted (parents, teacher, daycare provider, baby-sitter, etc.). Ask if it is okay, tell them who you will be going with, where you are going, how you are getting there, and when you will return." Look out for certain situations. Telling children merely to stay away from strangers is a vague concept for kids. Teach them to be on the lookout for certain kinds of situations or actions, such as an adult asking them for assistance, asking them to keep a secret, or attempting to touch them (or asking to be touched) in the bathing-suit areas of the body. Kids should learn to stay away from individuals in cars or vans. And they should know that exploiters or abductors may initiate seemingly innocent contact to gain their trust. Seek shelter from a storm. Teach children the safest place in your house in the event of a storm. In case of lightning, they should come inside immediately. If a tornado threatens, they should go to the basement or an interior room, such as a bathroom. If there's an earthquake, they should curl up under a table or desk and cover their head with their arms. Practice all of these procedures with the entire family.
Source: Parenthood.com Kids SAFE & SOUND™ Guide
http://www.esafety.com/esafety_cfmfiles/esafety.cfm?N=831
The complete Guide is available online at eSafety.com, a member of the Parenthood.com family of sites.
What can I do to make sure my home is safe for my child?
Even if you've installed products to secure your home, you still need to remember these everyday precautions:
Stay alert. Remember: nothing takes the place of close adult supervision.
Don't allow your child to play in kitchen cabinets. By establishing a cabinet as a play space, the child may feel that all cabinets are play spaces. When they're old enough, teach toddlers how to go up and down stairs-on their stomachs. Make sure you supervise their attempts; when the practice session is over, put the security gates back in place. Keep small objects and toys with small parts away from children under three. Check labels on toy packages for age-appropriateness before letting children play with the toys. Remove plastic bags from dry cleaning immediately; keep them completely out of children's reach. Keep your purse-and those of all guests-out of children's reach. Use Mylar balloons-not latex-to help prevent choking. Make sure grandparents and caregivers also childproof their homes.
No one regrets the time they spent taking precautions, only the time they wish they'd spent.
Be Prepared with Permission Forms. Is your child prepared for a trip to the emergency room? Unless the situation is life- or limb-threatening, emergency rooms cannot treat a child without permission from the parents. Therefore, you should sign an emergency-treatment authorization letter that will give hospitals permission to treat the child. Other items the letter should include are: emergency contacts, the name and phone number of your pediatrician, and your child's allergies and medications. Be sure to have the letter notarized.
The letter should be carried in your diaper bag or in older children's backpacks; make copies for grandparents and any care providers.
Source: Parenthood.com Kids SAFE & SOUND™ Guide
http://www.esafety.com/esafety_cfmfiles/esafety.cfm?N=821
The complete Guide is available online at eSafety.com, a member of the Parenthood.com family of sites.
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