Teaching safety skills to your toddler is crucial as they begin to explore the world more independently. And while it’s easy to babyproof your home and hope that this alone will keep them safe, there are inevitable factors beyond our control. To cope with the what-ifs, it can help to slow down, teach, and practice safety skills. Here are four to get started on:
1. Road Safety
When it is safe to do so, practice walking with your toddler on sidewalks, pointing out the curbs and how you always stop, look both ways for traffic, and listen for cars before crossing the street.
A reasonable boundary: If they run into a street, they lose the freedom to walk freely by the street. They must then hold your hand.
For practice: play the “stop and go” game. While on a sidewalk or in your home, playfully prompt your toddler to run when you say run, walk when you say walk, and then stop when you say stop. You can add silly variations like “stomp like an elephant” or “creep like a slug.” This adds concrete meaning to these terms, ensuring they know that stop means stop.
2. Tricky People (formerly known as “stranger danger”)
Stranger danger needed a rebrand because the truth is, even neighbors, friends, and family can sadly choose unsafe behaviors around children. Most crimes that we never want to have to think about, like kidnapping, are largely perpetrated by people close to the child and family.
By discussing tricky people, you’re helping your child understand that certain grownup requests are never okay, even if they come from familiar people.
You can let your child know that:
A grownup should never ask to share a secret with them. For things like birthday gifts, it can help to specifically call those “surprises.”
A grownup should never ask a child for help.
It’s never okay to go somewhere with another grownup. Remind them that you would always tell them about any plans beforehand.
A grownup should never touch their body without consent, especially not their private parts. Ensure you equip your child with the proper vocabulary of their private parts and avoid silly nicknames.
For practice: Add this board book to your home library and this one.
3. Water Safety
Emphasize that they should never go near pools, lakes, or other bodies of water without an adult. Consider basic water acclimation and swimming lessons to build their confidence and skills around water. When around a pool or body of water, you or another adult must always have 100 percent eyes on children. It can take a second of looking away to miss a child struggling, and drowning is often silent and difficult to see.
Never rely on arm floaties or other flotation devices. These often place young children in a vertical, “drowning position.”
Dress your baby in bright, neon swimsuits like red, orange, purple. Cool-tone suits can make it very difficult to spot a child underwater in the event of a rescue.
4. Safety with Animals
Teach your toddler to always ask an owner before petting a dog or other animal. It is never safe to run up to other animals and assume they are friendly. Show them how to approach and touch animals gently and calmly to avoid startling them.
If you have a cat or dog in your home, do not expect that they will tolerate rough or invasive play. It is up to you to teach your toddler how to gently care for and respond to the family pet. If they are not able to do so, set boundaries and remove your toddler from the situation. Children should never be allowed to sit or climb on an animal’s back, no matter how large the pet.
Sadly, many owners think their dog would never harm their toddler, and they miss the warning signs of a disgruntled animal suddenly showing aggression toward the toddler or child. Follow @dogmeetsbaby to see if you are interpreting your dog’s behavior cues accurately.
Other safety musts to keep in mind:
Covering a stroller with a blanket does not add shade; it traps heat. Never cover your toddler in their stroller on a hot day, even if the blanket is marketed as breathable.
Never leave your toddler unbuckled or unattended in a shopping cart. If they do, they can tip over and face serious injuries from falling.
Always check your vehicle's back seats before locking and exiting it. Many people think they would never leave their child in a hot car unattended, but these tragic events happen because of memory lapses that every single one of us is prone to, particularly in the summer when we have minor shifts in routine.
Want to keep safety tips top of mind? Follow these wonderful safety-oriented parenting accounts: