24/7 Emergency ServiceTeaching Your Kids About Fire, Safely | SERVPRO of Reno Southwest
6/14/2023 (Permalink)
SERVPRO of Reno Southwest is here for you and your family if you experience a fire in your home or business.
As a parent or a caregiver, you know how much work it is to raise your children, teach them about the world and keep them safe on a daily basis. You work hard to foster creativity and independence, but you also need to ensure they understand certain concepts and the realities of the world. That can be scary for young kids.
This is especially true when it comes to house fires. In order to help keep your children safe during the possibility of a fire, you need to approach fire safety in a stress-free and encouraging way.
Our team explains some easy ways to incorporate fire safety into your daily lives, so read on to learn some great tips.
It can be hard for children to understand concepts without seeing the realities in action. However, you don’t want to just be starting fires all over your home!
Start by having your children take you on a tour of your house and have them show you all the areas that fire is used. Be sure to stop at the stove, bonfire pit, grill and even your candles. Talk about how fire is started in each of these places and how it would spread if left alone.
You should also take the time to explain matches and lighters to your children. While you don’t necessarily need to show them how they work, they need to understand that they are adult tools only and should never be played with by children. A single smoldering match could easily be the cause of a devastating house fire.
Firefighters often can look intimidating to young children when they are in full uniform with all of their gear. If your child is scared of the people trying to help him or her, it can create a dangerous situation. Try to show your child pictures or books about firefighters and attend any local community events where our fire department will be present. Meeting these friendly heroes in person can take away some of that intimidation.
In addition to being comfortable around authority, your kids need to have the confidence to be loud in calling for help. You can make a game out of this! Have your children practice yelling their name and certain phrases to you from their bedroom, and then they can army-crawl down the hall and to you as fast as they can.
Do you have an emergency exit plan for your home? If not, you should take the time to create one right now. This is also another easy way to involve your children. Let them lead this process and identify all of the ways out of each room in your home and write down their findings together.
Don’t forget to include your windows in this process! Although it might seem scary or irresponsible to teach your children how to open your windows, it is necessary during a true emergency situation. Sit them down and explain how serious it is and that windows are never toys, but show them how they unlatch and how to pop out the screens.
Finally, choose an outdoor meeting place together and then put your entire plan into action. Practice this a few times a year and quiz your children on how to call 911 once you are outside.
Fires can cause widespread damage. Call us for a thorough and efficient restoration.