Home Safety Tips for Grade Four Students

Give each child a room to check for security such as door locks and windows.

Fourth-grade students are able to understand instructions, and their memory has developed. Have a conversation about home safety and ways to avoid potential fatal accidents. Give them rules such as do not answer the door when home alone and then explain that a stranger could take advantage of the situation of a child home alone. Tell the child what to do in a dangerous situation. Give children the safety tools to help themselves and others at home.

Water Safety

Do not leave your fourth-grader unattended in a swimming pool and be within earshot of a child taking a bath. Fourth-grade children still have immature judgment and could attempt a new dive into the pool or bump their head on the edge of the tub. Have the child stay out of the pool when you are not there to supervise. Enroll your child in swimming lessons to learn how to stay afloat and to prevent the child from panicking if caught in an unfamiliar body of water.

Fire Safety

Teach your children the signs of fire, smoke, heat and flames. Show them an evacuation route from each room in the house. Practice popping out windows and jumping out to safety. Keep window ladders near second-story widows for an exit route. Show them how to wet a towel and wrap themselves to prevent burns. Emphasize the importance of leaving their toys and other personal belonging behind. Those things can be replaced.

Home Alone

Fourth-graders are becoming more mature and want to gain independence from parents. If the child is left home alone, review some home-safety precautions before leaving her. Emphasize the importance of not answering the door. Have a specific list of people she can answer the door for, such as a family member or a trusted neighbor. If the child is unsure, tell her to call you and ask before opening the door. Keep the doors locked and the windows shut. Go over the worse-case scenario of a stranger entering the home. Teach the child to yell, scream, kick and run to a trusted neighbor or a populated public place. Review with the child when it is appropriate to call 911; for example, tell a child to call 911 if she is injured but not if her pet goldfish is dying.

Gun Safety

If you have a firearm stored in the house, teach your fourth-grader about gun safety and the dangers of reckless gun handling. As the parent, store the firearms and ammunition separately. Keep them locked away and in a spot a secret from the child. Without revealing your hiding spot, show your child the gun and, if you're comfortable, take him to a controlled environment such as a shooting range to display the power and damage a gun can do. Exposing your child to the firearm may eliminate any desire to seek the gun when you are not around or to carelessly play with it.

References

• Baby Center: Water Safety
• USFA: Kids
• Kids Health: Gun Safety

Resources

• Child Quest: Safety Tips for Kids