As a parent, you want to do your best to keep your children safe at all times. But what if they are home alone?
What should they do then? It’s not that simple, of course. There are safety rules for kids at home that need to be followed strictly in order to avoid accidents and injuries.
The following 13 essential safety rules for kids at home will help you make sure it is as safe as possible when your child is by themselves.
Keep the stove off
This includes burners, ovens, or anything else on the stovetop (including microwaves). Kids don’t know how easy it is for their clothing or hair to catch fire with an open flame nearby.
Putting something too close to the flame can also cause it to burst into flames. If you need something warmed up or cooked, go home early or wait until an adult is home to help do so because there are always other ways to prepare food if needed.
Always remember to close and lock all doors
Doors should be locked even when your child is at home alone for short amounts of time. Closing doors prevents small children from wandering into rooms they shouldn’t go into (like kitchens) but also protects them from intruders coming in through the front door unannounced.
An unlocked door is an open invitation for criminals who may want to break in.
Teach kids not to talk with strangers unless their parents say it’s okay
A lot of kids like to go outside and talk with people they don’t know. This is never okay for kids who are home alone, though, because there’s no way of knowing whether or not someone talking to them through the window is actually dangerous.
Strangers do not always look dangerous–they may be dressed up in nice clothing while passing out candy on Halloween. Teach children that they should only talk with strangers if mommy or daddy says it’s okay.
Only open the door for family members or friends
If your child wants to play outside while you’re gone, make sure it’s just with their siblings or trusted friends. Don’t allow them to invite random children over while you’re at work either because some kids aren’t trustworthy and may offer your child candy or even take them away from the house.
Practice what to do in case of a fire
A lot of children don’t know how to react if there’s an emergency and they need to evacuate through smoke and flames (without mommy and daddy).
Teach them exactly what you want them to do in the event of a fire before it ever happens so that it becomes routine and they can rely on their instincts while panicking. Also, make sure to renew your gas certificate if it is expired.
This certificate ensures that all gas appliances are working properly. Thus, there is no gas leakage issue, which can be dangerous for everyone.
Make sure kids understand phone safety
Teach young children not to answer the phone unless mommy or daddy is expecting a call. If they’re home alone, don’t let them answer the phone unless you’ve pre-arranged for someone else to call your child for a specific reason.
Teach kids about 911
It’s important to teach young children what emergency phone number to dial if they ever need help from the police, firefighters, or an ambulance. If they don’t have a landline at home, you can always show them how to use their cell phones and which buttons to press in case of an emergency.
Kids should never open a door without a parent around
If necessary, hide the key so that children who are playing alone feel more comfortable keeping themselves locked inside the house until mommy or daddy gets back from work. It’s also important that they know not to open any door for strangers, as mentioned earlier in the article.
Teach them how to turn the stove off
Burners are often turned on by accident when children are touching items around the kitchen. Teach kids to use oven mitts or pot holders whenever possible, so they don’t accidentally burn themselves while trying to cook something.
Make sure your child knows how to work their home’s circuit breakers
Teach them where the switches are and what each switch controls. This way, if there is a power outage, they can consult their step-by-step guide on how to restore electricity quickly and safely.
Keep dangerous household materials locked up
This includes cleaning products containing bleach or ammonia as well as paint thinners, solvents, pesticides, rodent poisons, and any other harmful household substances that may be poisonous or combustible. You should also think about locking up firearms and weapons that could endanger your child if they fell into the wrong hands.
Teach kids not to talk to strangers on social media
Some children don’t understand the difference between a stranger and somebody they know online, so it’s important for parents to teach them not to share any personal information unless their parents have approved it first. It’s always better safe than sorry!
Instruct young children how to use 911 on smartphones
If your child has an iPhone, this guide will show you where the emergency call button is and what action is needed in order to dial 911 safely from their phone. Teach them that unless mommy or daddy says it’s okay, they should not call for help unless it’s an absolute emergency.
Bonus Tip
Make sure children know the importance of having a meeting point for emergencies. If mommy or daddy is at work and their child is alone in the house, tell them to pick a certain place outside where they can meet if something ever happens.
This can be a stop sign down the street or a friend’s house that they pass on their way home from school. It should be somewhere that your child already knows how to get to without any guidance. The more prepared your child is before anything bad happens, the better!
Conclusion
We hope you’ve found these tips helpful and that you will take the time to implement at least a few of them into your daily routine. Just like anything else, it takes practice and patience, but eventually, your children will develop healthy safety habits that could potentially save their lives one day.
If you have any questions or concerns about implementing any of these tips, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us for more information or support.
