Praise or punish for safety behaviour?
Even parents who disagree with the concept of spanking a child will use spanking as a last resort in traffic safety situations. But research done in New Zealand and Britain indicates that severe discipline might not work. One study showed that one out of three children who were killed by oncoming vehicles had previously been disciplined for playing on the road. One of the conclusions drawn was that children don't understand what being hit by a car means. "Mommy hit me and that didn't really hurt" may be a child's perception. Whenever possible, praise good roadsafety behaviour.
Bikes & trikes and battery-driven vehicles
Don't allow children under six to ride their trikes or bikes near a street for the same reasons that you don't leave them unsupervised. When your preschooler is ready for a bike, she's also ready for an approved bike helmet. Make the rule "No helmet, No riding" even when she's going biking on a bike path. Most bike injuries don't involve cars.
Some tips
• Involve your child in a community bike-check and safety rally.
• Check your child's bike regularly; involve her in bike maintenance.
• Ride with your child in a safe place and teach road safety as you go.
Car safety
Until a child is 18 kg (40 lb.) or about 100 cm (40 in.) tall, he should be buckled into an appropriate car seat in the back seat. Maintain the backseat rule until your child is at least twelve years of age to protect him from the dangers of an inflating air bag. Transport Canada recommends that children under twelve not ride in the front seat of vehicles equipped with air bags. But neither you nor your child will always know whether the car you're riding in has air bags.
Some car-riding tips
• Avoid giving a child hard candies, peanuts, grapes, or any food that may cause her to choke while she is in the car.
• Never leave a child alone in a car.
• Do not show a child how to start the car or work the controls, with the exception of the horn.
• Keep all the doors locked at all times while you're in the car.
• Teach your child to get out of a car on the non-traffic side.
• Teach your child to hold her caretaker's hand in a parking lot.
