teaching children not to play with fire

Teaching children not to play with fire
Children playing with fire accounts for a large amount of childhood deaths from fire. Sadly, many of the children killed in a fire, started it themselves. It is suspected that around 250,000 fires are set each year in the United States by children under 18. It is important to give children a healthy fear and respect for fire, and emphasize how dangerous it can be.

Many parents don’t realize how young this curiosity with fire can start. Many studies suggest that this curiosity develops even before the age of 3, and there are a large amount of fires that are started by preschool aged children, experimenting with fire. It is important, from a very young age, that you reinforce with your children a healthy respect for fire.

·	Make a habit of taking advantage of all the opportunities you have to talk with your children about fire. Whenever you hear on the news or read in a paper about something catching fire, use it to show them how easily fire can spread and how dangerous it can be if not used very carefully.

Children in a home with smokers are twice as likely to curiosity play with fire than those in non-smoking households. If you have a member of your household that smokes, be sure to take extra precautions to explain to your children the hazards of playing with fire, and make sure you have a responsible smoker, who does not leave his or her lighter or matches lying around the house.

Just a helpful fact: When children set fires in the home, the most common area is the child’s bedroom. They also tend to set fires in their closets and under their beds, in their bed under the sheets, or other dark places where they can see their creation. These are also usually the most dangerous places they could choose to start a fire.

·	If you ever catch your child playing with fire, do not take the situation lightly. Too often, fire-setters who are not given proper guidance will likely do it again, becoming a risk to everyone around them.

·	Make a habit of checking under beds and in your child’s closet for burned matches or any evidence that your child may be experimenting with fire.

·	Model healthy fire handling yourself. Don’t play with fire or handle it irresponsibly in front of your children.

·	Explain to your children that fire is not a toy. It is a tool for adults to use very carefully. Much like a power saw or a stove.

·	Explain to them that fire is an unstable substance, and that it can get bigger very quickly if people are not extremely careful.

·	Besides teaching children never to play with fire, tell them that if they ever see any matches or lighters laying around they should not touch them and tell an adult right away.

·	Show your child some matches and a lighter, while explaining to them the dangers. Use this analogy: Hold the tools up, and explain to them that these are far more dangerous than a gun. Explain to them that, every year, these kill more children than guns do.

·	Reward children for telling you if they ever find matches or lighters laying around anywhere. Give them praise for doing the right thing.