A Primer for Preschooler Safety

Your little ones can learn a lot about safety if you take some time to teach them. Keep your lessons simple, say the experts, and even very young children can learn how to stay clear of danger. Here's an ABC that you and your children can recite together.

'A': Always ride in a car safety seat

Automobile accidents are the number one cause of death for preschoolers, according to the U.S. National Center for Health Statistics.

Teach your child to get into his or her safety seat. Always make sure your child sits in the back seat of the car, even if you're only driving to the nearest convenience store, the American Academy of Pediatrics says.

'B': Beware of fire

"Three hundred children every year are killed because they or another child were playing with matches or lighters," says Sharon Gamashe, executive director of the National Fire Protection Association's Center for High-Risk Outreach.

Of course, you should keep matches and lighters out of reach, Ms. Gamashe says. Teach your child never to touch them and to tell you or another responsible adult immediately if someone is playing with matches.

Make sure children know that if their clothes catch on fire, they should "stop, drop and roll." Young children may take the safety slogans literally and roll only one revolution. So practice rolling with them to extinguish mock flames.

Devise a family escape route, and crawl with them on the floor to practice getting safely out of the house. Make sure they know what your home's smoke alarms sound like, Ms. Gamashe adds.

'C': Call for help with the telephone

Even very young children can learn to call for help by dialing 911 or your local emergency number. Practice dialing the number either on a pretend phone or a disconnected one and stress that the number is used only for emergencies. "And tell them not to hang up, because that's a key connection," Ms. Gamashe says. "You do want to keep them on the line, because once they hang up, the connection is gone."