Parenting Win of the Week: Let’s Talk About Safety
This book sparks discussions around basic safety.
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One of the hardest parts of being a parent (at least for me, but I am sure you’ll agree) is finding ways to keep our kids safe. There are so many terrible things happening in the world that we just can’t prevent, and if I had one superhero power, it would be to shield my kids from it all. The most recent school shooting was not too far from where I went to summer camp and it has cracked my heart wide open. I can’t even begin to tackle that safety topic yet.
Of course, not every safety situation is in our control, but there are certain safety situations where knowledge and preparation can make a huge difference. Last winter, I wrote an article about little safety and preparation tips you may not think about in situations like power outages, house fires, and earthquakes. It made me realize just how unprepared we were. Since then, we have created a plan, made an emergency contact list, and gathered supplies we need in the basement.
This past summer, our neighbors’ house caught on fire across the street, and luckily, the kids were out of the house and nobody was hurt. Seeing that (and the bazillion fire trucks on my street) made me glad we had a basic plan, but I think it’s also one that is worth revisiting with the whole family often.
That’s why it was awesome to see this new book come out called A Kids Book About Safety. I am sure you are familiar with the other awesome additions to the A Kids Book About series. They do a good job of tackling tough topics in a straightforward way that kids can understand.
I like this one because it helps you create a plan for your family while being direct and not scary. I had an opportunity to speak with the author and CEM, Soraya Sutherlin, and she is a wealth of knowledge. She advises for JUDY, which sells emergency preparedness kits, so you don’t even have to think about stocking your own.
This book really takes you step-by-step to figure out what supplies you need, what you need to look for, a family meeting spot in case of emergency, and who kids can trust if they can’t find mom and dad. It leaves room to discuss your plan, practice your plan, and it even has space in the back to write it out as a family. No matter how old your kids are, I think there’s value in discussing safety with toddler-age kids, even if they don’t fully understand it. It still forces you, as parents, to create a plan. Elementary school-aged kids will definitely benefit from it and it will likely seem familiar with things like stop, drop, and roll and community helpers.
The Red Cross also has some great resources to refer to when planning for any emergency.
It is certainly not the most fun thing you’ll do as a family, but it could turn out to be one of the most important.
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