Be safe!

Keep your child safe from harm at home, at play, in child care, and in the community. A safe environment is one that allows your child to explore without getting hurt, grow and learn without being afraid, and to be nourished with healthy air, nutritious food, and positive attention.

Providing a physically safe environment includes baby-proofing your home, keeping your child away from cigarette smoke and other toxins (such as household cleaners and chemicals), preventing your child from experiencing abuse, and paying attention to your child's physical needs, such as activity level, temperature, and cleanliness. Keeping your child safe socially and emotionally means showering your child with positive attention, consistently attending to your child's needs, and keeping your child away from people and environments that are emotionally abusive. Safe physical environments allow children to explore, which encourages physical development such as muscle strength, control, and motor skills. Exploration also stimulates brain development and thinking and analyzing skills. Emotionally safe environments allow your child to learn about appropriate behaviors, understand and identify emotions, and to express thoughts and feelings.

Developmental milestones
Knowing where your child should be developmentally will help you continue to foster a safe environment for you child.

  • Your infant will sleep 14-17 hours a day, so it’s important that her crib meet all safety requirements. Always lay your infant on her back to sleep.
  • Since your baby learns through touching and tasting, be sure all potentially dangerous objects are out of reach.
  • Although your child’s body is slowly getting stronger, the muscles are not yet fully developed. Shaking your baby roughly can cause serious brain damage or even death. Gently bouncing your child will not harm her, but you should never shake your baby.
  • Around 1 year of age, your child will be learning to walk. Objects that were previously out of reach may now be within your child’s grasp. Make sure your house remains baby-safe as your child grows.
  • Playing is a basic way your child learns. Make sure the toys you choose for your child are age-appropriate.

Infant safety checklist

For more information, see Safety and Ways to Avoid Toxins.

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Be safe!

A physically safe environment at home, outside, and at child care lets your child explore and learn without harm. Your 2- to 3-year-old is very curious. This curiosity is an important way your child learns, but it can also lead her into potentially dangerous situations. Your toddler will want to climb on furniture, roll in the grass, open doors, and taste all kinds of things, so it's important that your home is danger-free. All household chemicals, including lawn chemicals and pesticides, should be impossible for your child to get into. If you do choose to use pesticides in your yard, make sure your child has no contact with any of the chemicals at any time.

Your child will be watching and imitating everything you do. The way you interact with your child now provides the basis for how your child interacts with others later in life. Talking to your child, being affectionate, responding to questions and needs with care and understanding, and being patient with your child's exploration of emotions will help your child learn how to regulate behaviors. Spend lots of time with your child. Being there for her teaches trust and attachment. Knowing that she is safe and cared for helps her interact positively with other people. However, with your child's growing independence and lessening shyness around strangers, you should also teach her what types of interactions are safe. Emotionally negative or abusive interactions can harm your child's ability to interact with others and can hinder a variety of learning experiences.

Developmental milestones
Knowing where your child should be developmentally will help you continue to foster a safe environment for you child.

  • Your child is learning to open doors and cabinets. Make sure all household cleaners and toxins are far from your child’s reach or behind locked or baby-proofed doors. Keep stairways and any other potentially dangerous places in your house, such as the garage, blocked off or locked.
  • Learning to ride a tricycle is a big step! Helmets are important even for children on tricycles. Make sure your child wears a bicycle helmet that fits correctly.
  • Your child is learning that hot stoves and moving cars are dangerous, but her curiosity may sometimes put her in dangerous situations. Your child still needs reminders and supervision to help her learn what is safe.
  • Teach your child safe and acceptable behavior. Do not expect your child to remember that hitting the cat is a "no-no" after one time. Use simple phrases to explain why your child should not hit the cat, show your child how to pet the cat softly, and distract your child with another task. Be patient with your child and be willing to repeat yourself.
  • Acting shy around strangers and being possessive of (and aggressive with) toys and parents are normal reactions for 2- and 3-year-olds. Modeling healthy interactions with other people, teaching your child to share, and talking to your child about strangers will help your child develop healthy relationships.
  • Pay attention to the images your child sees on television and in movies. Violence and action that adults are used to seeing will frighten small children. Toddlers are still learning the differences between real and pretend, and scary television shows and movies can lead to nightmares, distrust, and confused emotions.

Toddler Safety Checklist

For more information, see Safety, Home’s Your Haven--Make It Safe, and Building Empathy and Sympathy.

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Be safe!

As your child grows older and becomes more active and independent, there are all kinds of new hazards to watch out for! Continue to create a safe environment at home by nurturing and encouraging your child’s learning by asking your child questions, helping your child understand and identify emotions, keeping dangerous objects out of your child’s grasp, and spending lots of time with your child.

Developmental Milestones
Knowing where your child should be developmentally will help you continue to foster a safe environment for you child.

  • Now that your child likes to be independent, is walking up and down stairs, playing rough, learning to ride a bicycle, and cutting with scissors, there are all kinds of new hazards to watch out for! Make sure your child has the protection she needs (such as a bicycle helmet and knee pads, and blunt scissors made for preschoolers) to keep her safe in her new activities.
  • Meet the parents of your child's friends and make sure you feel comfortable with your child in their home or in their care. Also make sure your child care or preschool is a place where both you and your child feel safe, emotionally and physically.
  • As your child begins to understand the difference between “real” and “pretend,” and is learning to understand emotions such as sadness, happiness, and anger, talk to your child about proper ways to express emotions.
  • Pay attention to the images your child sees on television and in movies. Violence and action that adults are used to seeing will frighten children. Preschoolers are still learning the differences between real and pretend and how to regulate their emotions. Scary television shows and movies can lead to nightmares, distrust, and feelings that they may not understand.

Preschooler Safety Checklist

For more information, see Safety and Home’s Your Haven--Make It Safe, and Building Empathy and Sympathy.

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