Teaching Kids Home Security

While a great deal of teaching children about being safe in their homes centers around threats posed by other humans, there are more significant and commonly-seen threats that need to be addressed. Fire, to be certain, is among these threats. Power outages, floods and strong storms are more likely to present a threat to a child than is a prowler or a burglar. Other threats include improperly-functioning furnaces that leech off carbon monoxide and being injured in the home when there's no one within earshot to lend assistance. Educating children about these hazards, fortunately, can actually be quite fun, despite the severity of the threats.

There are likely few children on Earth who aren't somewhat curious about how a fire extinguisher works. After all, firefighters are heroes to just about everyone, adults and children alike. Taking one's child out in the backyard and letting them use a fire extinguisher for themselves is not only fun, it's a potentially life-saving lesson. Remember to instruct them as to what types of fire extinguishers work on which types of fires and to always aim at the base of the fire. For the best lesson, start a small fire in a safe place and let the child practice putting it out with the extinguisher.

Natural disasters, obviously, cannot be combated but teaching a child how to safely wait-out such events is a necessity for any parent. This, too, can be fun. By teaching a child what a natural disaster really entails, their fear will generally be lessened and by teaching them what they can do to keep safe their fear will be lessened further still. Teach them basic survival skills including calling for help, taking shelter and staying away from windows during strong storms. Make certain they know where emergency supplies are located within the home and what to do if someone is injured. One would be surprised how well a child can function in an emergency when they're provided with the right skills.

Carbon monoxide kills many people every year. This threat manifests when a home's heater is burning improperly. The survival skills for these disasters involve recognizing the symptoms of poisoning and emphasizing to the children that they must get out of the house as soon as possible. This lesson carries over to many other gaseous environmental pollutants. Various cleaning fluids, when mixed, can produce substances such as chlorine gas which is positively lethal.

A home alarm system which has sensors that detect fire, freezing and broken windows is part and parcel of making these efforts work. These alarms alert the monitoring agency when such conditions are detected and, if someone is injured, one can contact the alarm operators through the device itself to request assistance. Children need to be instructed in how to use these devices so that they can avail themselves of the safety they provide. Most children, born into a very digital age, will quickly understand the various workings and feel immediately comfortable with these devices.