Road safety is essential for everyone, but it becomes even more critical when you have children. Teaching them the basics of road safety will hopefully keep them safe as they navigate their way through life. In this post, you will find tips on teaching your kids about road safety.
Tell them to use crosswalks.
When you are crossing the street, your child should use a crosswalk when they can. This will ensure that they have their eye out for cars and won’t get hit by one.
Only cross the street at intersections.
When we teach our children about road safety, we should also teach them that they should not ever cut through a parking lot or other areas where there might be traffic. Instead, always go to an intersection and only cross if it is safe for you to do so.
Walk on sidewalks.
Whenever possible, your child should use a sidewalk when walking. If there is no sidewalk, they need to walk on the side of the road facing traffic and avoid straying from where they are walking.
Only cross at corners.
Please do not teach your child that it is okay to wander out into an intersection or cut through more than one lane of traffic; they need to stay on the corner and only cross when safe.
Make sure your child understands signs.
Teaching your children about road safety includes knowing what signs mean to know whether or not it is safe for them to cross and turn left or right.
Do not let your child play on the street.
Children must be taught about road safety at a young age, and that includes not playing on the street where there may be cars coming and going. Electric scooter and motorcycle accidents seem to be especially prevalent these days, so it’s important to monitor your children when they’re playing outside. If your child does get hurt in an accident like this, you need to seek an NYC motorcycle accident lawyer or a lawyer from wherever you live or wherever the accident took place. Nevertheless, teach your kids to play on the porch or in the backyard where cars won’t be near them.
Know when to walk home from school.
It is always better if your children are dropped off or picked up by an adult when they go to and come back from school. However, this is not always possible to teach them about road safety and how long it will take for you to get there (if necessary) before they start walking.
Always look both ways.
Teach your children about road safety by telling them always to look both ways before they cross a street or get on the bus. This is true for everyone, but especially important if you have kids who are still learning how to navigate around traffic.
Explain hand signals.
Teach your children about road safety by explaining what different hand signals mean so that they always know whether or not it’s safe to cross the street.
Let them practice.
Give your child some time every day to walk around and look for cars. This will help them be safer on the road when they get older and start driving themselves because it is never too early to prepare them for this.
Know how to handle distractions.
Teach your children about road safety by explaining why distracted walking is so dangerous. If you walk while looking at your phone or listening to music, you might not be able to hear the cars coming and get hurt.
Let them know when the rules change.
Make sure your children understand that they might have different traffic signals or roads with more lanes than what you are used to at home in some areas. Teach them about road safety by explaining how these differences will affect their behavior on the street and why it is vital to follow the rules.
Teach them how to react.
If your child ever gets lost or separated from you on a busy street, they need to know what their options are and that it’s okay for them to ask strangers, preferably ones in uniform (police officers or law enforcement officers) or store employees, for help as long as they don’t go into cars with anyone who offers this assistance. Teach your children about road safety by explaining how they can find help and what kinds of things they should look for.
Remember the rules.
It would help if you kept reminding your children about road safety until it became second nature to them. Ensure that you always stress these three crucial points when discussing ways to stay safe on busy roads and intersections.
Stay alert.
Teach your kids always to be alert when walking around a busy street, as this will help them if they ever need to avoid something quickly. This is especially true at night or during bad weather so that they can see and hear what’s going on around them.
In summary, teaching your children about road safety is a responsibility that every parent must take seriously. Ensure you constantly remind them of the rules and teach them new things.