Safety - Child Safety Tips And Children Safety Education

Child safety is a major concern for all responsible parents, but it's important to keep things in perspective - accidents involving kids resulting in fatalities or serious injury are rare, but it's still necessary to try and reduce those numbers. Parents have to strike the right balance between making sure their children are safe in the home, the garden, the car and at school, but also giving their kids enough freedom to enjoy their childhood. So how do we do this?

Child Safety Tips

Children will always surprise you. During their early years, their growth and development is very fast, and something they couldn't reach yesterday is today within their grasp - unfortunately, this also applies to sharp objects, door handles, stairways and busy roads (depending on the age of your child of course). Parents, especially first time parents, may not know what to expect from their kids at different stages of their development, therefore parent education on child safety is just as important as teaching the child in the family to keep safe. There is more than one source of information on child safety available to you as a parent. Online, you'll find children's safety articles for parents, as well as childhood education articles aimed at helping you teach your child about safety issues. Child development books are another place to find similar information, and of course, other parents are an invaluable source of firsthand experience!

Taking a child safety course is a great way for couples to prepare for starting a family or to refresh their knowledge. You'll find courses like this in community halls, health clinics and even in dedicated childhood safety centers. Courses generally cover basic safety measures for everyday life, as well as first aid including resuscitation. Parents who can't attend a course outside the home due to their work or childcare schedule may be able to find an interactive course online.

Safety Education For Children

Child safety is just one of the issues addressed in early childhood education. In preschool and elementary school, lessons in children's safety education teach kids how to cross the road safely, and that they should not to talk to strangers, for example. These lessons can only be effective if the message that kids receive is backed up at home. Parents must lead by example - if you expect your child to wait for the green light before crossing the road, or not to touch electric switches with wet hands, then you must be seen to be doing the same yourself. Otherwise your kids won't take the danger seriously.

Life And Death Issues

One of the life and death issues in child safety which parents worry about is crib safety.

Most parents are aware of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome - a rare, and therefore little understood condition that sadly causes seemingly healthy babies to pass away in their sleep. In all likelihood, this awful experience will never affect your family, however all parents should know the guidelines for avoiding this terrible situation.

One, always put your baby to sleep on his back, never on his front (even if he sleeps better that way); two, never put your baby to sleep with a pillow; three, always use a firm baby mattress and remove all plastic covering before you put it in the crib; four, clear your baby's crib of all clutter - the ideal situation is to have nothing in the crib but your baby and the mattress; five, make sure your baby isn't too hot or too cold while he is sleeping.

You can get more information from the website of the American Sudden Infant Death Syndrome Institute.

Home Safety Measures

There are plenty of sites that contain good information on child measures safety in the home (such as using child safety latches on doors and safety gates on stairways, etc.). Try the site of Safe Kids USA. There are other sites that provide child product recall information - here you'll find information on products that have been found to contain a safety defect and may therefore be dangerous to have in your home. Check out the site of the Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association for the latest recall updates.