No parent wants to sit their children down and frighten them with stories of the house burning down if they are not very careful about certain things. For parents is can be confounding about how to approach a situation like fire safety without making the kids scared to go to sleep at night. But if you want to teach you children about fire safety it is not necessary to get information from an expert or the library since there are no real rules. The key is to devise a system of fire safety for the home that is effective and easy for young children to grasp the concept of.
Children are very naturally very curious and eager to learn new things so educating them about hazardous things should not be that difficult. It’s important for parents to point out things like lighters and matches and explain that they are for adults to use only and they could be dangerous for kids to play with. Make a point to educate the children about the proper uses for those items and that they are not toys. But also be sure to point out that its not only kids playing with matches that cause fires, that adults can cause accidental fires too. Explain that the stove can be very dangerous for fires and the kids should not play around in there when someone is cooking.
A key point when teaching children about fire safety is informing them of what to do if they see a fire or smoke. They should know that if they see a lot of smoke they should crawl along the ground where the air will be clear and try to get to the exit point you have pointed out in a fire escape plan. If their clothes ever catch fire teach the kids how to drop to the ground and roll around until the fire is extinguished. While you are teaching the kids these things and practicing the fire safety steps to make sure you tell them not to panic. Make it fun and informative at the same time. See who can get out of the house in a safe manner the quickest. Or who has the best technique for the stop, drop, and roll.
Teaching children about fire safety is an ongoing process and most of the responsibility is the parent’s. Even if your home is thoroughly child proofed there is still a possibility that accidental fires may occur. Anything that you think will make the children less likely to panic in an emergency is a good thing to teach. You can even get smoke alarms that have a voice command so that you can record instructions when they go off instead of a shrill piercing noise that could scare a sleeping child. Your children’s safety is in your hands and keeping them informed and calm is the best way to do that.
