As a parent, one of your primary roles in life is to prepare your children for the world outside of your home. You have to ensure they get a good education, that they know how to manage their health, and — perhaps most importantly — how to keep themselves safe.
A Key Element Of Safety: Crossing The Street
One of the most fundamental aspects of teaching your children how to be safe outside of the home is teaching them to cross the road. Navigating modern roads and traffic as a pedestrian is incredibly concerning; our roads are busier and more complex than ever.
This complexity is evidenced by:
- The statistics on https://www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/pedestrian_safety/index.html, which make for grim reading.
- The fact that a huge number of parents are afraid to let their children explore by themselves for fear of road traffic accidents.
- The necessity for specialist services such as GBW.law/personal-injury/pedestrian-accidents to help people cope in the aftermath of an accident.
So, given this environment of scared parents, bustling traffic, and legal requirements, teaching your child to cross the street is more important than ever.
How Can You Teach Your Children To Cross The Street?
Well, you can start by showing your child an instructional video to cover the basics. The one below is a good choice:
When they have watched the video — preferably a few times — head out to test the theory in practice. Ideally, the only reason for going out on that occasion should be to talk about crossing the street safely; you don’t want to be distracted by other tasks.
This is a circumstance where practice definitely makes perfect, so you might want to switch to walking wherever you can for a few weeks. This will give you and your child ample opportunity to practice; hopefully, to a point where they can go through the basics without having to be prompted.
How Can You Know When Your Kids Can Be Trusted To Cross The Road Safely?
Frankly, there’s no way of knowing 100% that your children are going to adhere to the rules for crossing the street when you’re not present. Use your judgement on this, combined with your knowledge of your child’s personality and how good they are at following rules in general.
When Are Children Old Enough To Cross The Street By Themselves?
As discussed on https://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/, a study found that crossing the street is simply too complex for children under the age of 14. As a result of this conclusion, you may want to ensure that your children are always supervised up until this age.
To Conclude
Teaching your kids to cross the street is an incredibly nerve-wracking time for parents and children alike, so go slowly, building constantly on their knowledge and experience. Only when they are at an acceptable age, and you are 100% certain of their ability to cross the street safely, should you allow your children to cross the street without adult supervision. Good luck.