Find the Right Car Seat for Your Child's Size
Many parents move their child from a car seat with a harness to a booster seat or adult seat belt too soon. Your child needs the protection of a car seat with a harness until about age four. Snug harness straps keep your child secure during normal driving and in a crash.
Only switch to a booster when your child reaches the weight limit of the harness (check the label) or his or her shoulders are above the top harness slots.
Children under 13 should always ride in the back seat and everyone in the car should be buckled up. It's the law.
Questions?
Call the Safety Restraint Coalition at 1-800-282-5587 or visit The Safety Restraint Coalition.
Keep Your House Safe for Your Child
Children are naturally curious, so even though your child is getting older, you must still watch him or her every minute. To make your home safer:
- Install stairway gates and window guards.
- Install window stops or guards to keep windows from opening more than four inches. Keep things your child can climb on away from windows. Visit Safe Kids Worldwide for more information.
- Keep window blind cords away from your child's bed and out of reach.
- Keep your child away from ovens, stoves, irons, curling irons, fireplaces, and heaters.
- Keep medicines in child-resistant containers, locked up and out of reach.
- Put away purses and backpacks, that may contain dangers.
- Keep chemicals, detergents, nicotine and marijuana products, and gun and knives stored safely and out of reach.
- Post the phone number of the Washington Poison Center (1-800-222-1222) near the phone.
- Keep items with small coin-sized batteries away from children. They are harmful if swallowed.
Choose Toys Carefully
Keep your child's age, abilities, and interests in mind when choosing toys. Toys meant for older children may be dangerous for your child. Teach older children to pick up their toys and put them out of reach when done playing with them. Avoid toys with small parts, which could cause choking. Broken or empty latex balloons cause more choking deaths than any other children's product. Consider choosing Mylar balloons. which are less hazardous.