Safety First
Your #1 priority is to keep children safe while they are in your care.
- Closely supervise children.
- Recognize, remove and/or limit potential safety hazards.
- Administer medication properly.
- Prepare for emergency situation.
Closely Supervise Children
- Be alert. Know where children are at all times.
- Position yourself strategically so that you can see all of the children.
- Circulate throughout the room.
- Be close enough to intervene if necessary.
- Establish clean, simple and positive safety rules. For example:
- We walk inside. Running is for outside.
- Our toys are for playing.
- Remain within range of voice so that you can hear the children and they can hear you.
- Maintain child/staff ratios at all times.
Recognize, remove and/or limit potential safety hazards
Recognize common hazards and types of injuries.
Falls - Children in early care and educational settings are more likely to be injured by a fall than by any other type of injury. Falls are frequently associated with children’s curiosity and development or motor skills, particularly climbing. Children learn to climb up before they learn to climb down. Also, children do not have well-developed depth perception and may not realize how high they have climbed.
Drowning - One inch of water is all it takes for a child to drown. And it doesn’t take long. Two minutes following submersion a child will lose consciousness. Irreversible brain damage occurs after 4-6 minutes. Most drowning happens when a child is left unattended for a moment or the child manages to slip away from the watchful eye of an adult.
Burns - Children of all ages face the risk of burns from several different sources. Scald burns caused by hot liquids or steam are the most common cause of burns to younger children. A child exposed to hot water at 140 degrees F for 3 seconds will sustain a third degree burn, an injury that requires hospitalization and skin grafts. Because of their curiosity and fascination with fire, toddlers and older children are more likely to receive flame burns caused by direct contact with fire. Children receive contact burns when they touch extremely hot objects, electrical burns when they come in contact with electrical current and chemical burns when their skin comes in contact with strong chemicals.