The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Is your child ready to ride on the road? A child who was happy to ride his bike on the driveway last year may now be pleading for the chance to ride alone to his friend's house. Is he ready to do it safely? The National child safety program, Safe Kids Canada, recommends children be kept off the road until at least age 10. While most children have the physical skills to ride a bicycle at a younger age, they need a more sophisticated mix of both mental and physical skills to ride safely in traffic. These skills develop gradually between the ages of 10 and 14. Before letting a 10-year-old ride on the road, Safe Kids Canada recommends that the child be well trained in road rules. The child should also have lots of practice with parents before being allowed to ride alone. Another critical part of bicycle safety is a helmet. Bike helmets save lives; in the event of a crash, a helmet reduces the risk of head injury by up to 85 percent. Make sure helmets fit properly and are worn correctly. Be water smart More than half of all drownings and near-drownings happen to children under age five. They are at high risk because they're attracted to water but don't understand the dangers. Toddlers and preschoolers can drown quickly and silently; these tragedies often happen during a brief lapse of adult supervision. Safe Kids Canada, a national child safety program, wants parents to know how to keep their children safe near water this summer. Actively supervise your child near water Wear life jackets Keep at home pools fenced in To learn more about summer safety, visit www.safekidscanada.ca or call Safe Kids Canada at 1-888-SAFE-TIPS (723-3847). The "Make it a Safe Kids Summer" campaign, held during Safe Kids Week, runs from May 30 to June 5 and is sponsored by Johnson & Johnson. Source: Safe Kids Canada
