When dealing with infants/toddlers, there are many risky situations associated with the age group that often cause injury. These injuries are often caused because of curiosity, limitations in their thought process and most importantly them not being properly supervised. Potentially hazardous situations causing injury among this age group are: jumping/falling off furniture or playground equipment, playing with electrical sockets, playing with hazardous chemicals, and drowning in swimming pools.
Infants/toddlers are easily influenced and curious, so if they see someone jump off something, they believe that they can also without injury. Quite often, they are unfortunately mistaken and end up hurting themselves and others. In order to prevent this type of situation, it is best to encourage the children not to engage in this type of activity. Offer alternatives to jumping that do not include furniture. They should also still be talked with about the consequences of jumping off of objects, such as getting scraped knees or bruised elbows. If the child understands the risks of their behavior they may avoid it all together.
Toddlers are more mature than infants; however, their curiosity often stops them from processing the cause and effects. Electrical outlets look interesting and toddlers love to stick toys in everything. So sometimes they put objects in them or even their fingers. As a result of their curiosity they are met with a nasty and sometimes fatal shock. To prevent this it is always good uses covers and continue to remind the child to leave them alone and talk about the injuries involved with playing with an electrical outlet. Although talking to them is not always effective so it is always best to use outlet covers and try to block their access to the outlets.
Poisonings are accidental, but nonetheless, they do occur in all age groups. The children should be taught not to put anything into their mouths that is not food but for an infant/toddler this is a concept not easily grasped. Chemicals used for cleaning, such as bleach should always be kept out of reach of children. They should be place up high and/or in a locked cabinet at all times. Children of this age will put anything in their mouths and if it looks like something to drink they will drink it.
Biting often occurs a lot in the toddler classroom. When a child bites another, that children should be separated. While comforting the child who was bitten the child whom the biting should know that biting is wrong and that it hurts their friends. They should also help in comforting the child they bit.
Lastly, children often horseplay around swimming pools, fall in, and drown because of their inability to swim. The best way to prevent this is to always have an adult supervising the kids when around water. The main reason for drowning in pools is due to children being unsupervised. Another way to keep this from happening is to make sure that there are rules in place. Most importantly is to keep infant/toddlers away from the pool at all times unless with an adult.
In order to further keep the children safe, it is best for the parents to also go over rules and guidelines with the child. If rules are put in place at an early age and enforced the older the child gets the more likely they are to follow them. Even an older toddler can tell you what the rules are if they are constantly reminded what they are and enforced. As the caregiver you have to remember that they are still at a curious and impressible age and even though they know the rules they are not always going to follow them. So children need to be supervised at all times to ensure that the risk of them getting injured is reduced.
No comments:
Post a Comment