Summer’s a great time to be at home with your kids. Lots of things you can do as a family, and generally freer schedules. But there are also plenty of hazards.

Swimming pools are one of the best known hazards. Every parent knows that young children need to be watched around them. But do you think about smaller water holders, such as buckets? If you have younger children, these can pose a danger too.

Even if your kids aren’t going to be around water all that often I strongly recommend swimming lessons each summer. It’s just good sense. You may not have a pool, but will they ever go to a friend’s house? What if the friend has a pool?

It amazes me how often I see very young children playing in the street if the street is at all quiet. This is especially common on cul de sacs. What I find disturbing is how common it is to see children as young as 2 doing this with no obvious adult supervion. Just a slightly older sibling. And even the quietest of streets do sometimes get cars going too fast down them. It’s not something I think of as a good idea.

This also worries me because it makes young children very comfortable playing in the street, which isn’t safe everywhere. Teaching them the difference would take time.

Wearing the proper safety equipment is one I know many parents and/or children resist. Helmets and protective padding get hot and uncomfortable. But they’re also very important. I sometimes think of the child who was in the hospital bed next to my son’s after his surgery. He had had an accident on his bike, and the nurses took the time to explain to his parents that he was lucky his injuries weren’t worse, and that they needed to be sure he always wore his helmet. I don’t know what his injuries were, so don’t ask. But sufficient to land him in the hospital for at least one night.

There’s a lot more you can do of course… playground safety, being safe in the car and so forth.

[tags]summer safety,preventing injuries,swimming[/tags]