As parents, there are many aspects of raising a kid that need to eventually be prepared for. One of them is learning exactly when it is safe to leave tweens alone in the house, whether making a quick stop to the grocery or attending an emergency meeting at the office. Here are things that need to be remembered when it comes to how to teach a tween about first aid.
Questions a parent may have when it comes to teaching a tween about first aid may include:
- What are the skills that tweens can handle when learning about first aid?
- Can a tween already grasp the principles of how to do the CPR?
- Does a tween know when to call 911, and what to say on the phone?
- More importantly, how can a parent teach a tween how to remain calm in the midst of an emergency?
Deciding When to Leave a Tween Alone in the Home
Being a tween is that stage in life when a kid is not a child anymore, but is also still not yet a full-fledged adolescent. Before learning how to teach a tween about first aid, a parent must discover exactly when leaving him alone at home is an option.
Basically, a parent should be able to safely leave a tween alone in the home if running a quick errand (less than one hour away from home). For example, if a parent needs to pick up an older or younger sibling from school, it is pretty much a safe assumption that one can leave a tween at home. Just make sure that he will not be too frightened, if this is the case.
Also, over time, a parent will be able to recognize whether a tween has a strong personality to be able to temporarily look after the home and keep himself safe. To determine whether it is safe to leave a tween alone at home in the first place, use the following checklist as a guide:
- Can he follow rules and instructions?
- Can he be considered as self-sufficient?
- Can he handle dialing the telephone in case an emergency call needs to be made?
- Does he have a personality that will not panic in case there is an emergency?
- Is he responsible when doing household chores?
By using this mini-questionnaire as a guide and combining it with natural paternal instinct, it is easy to decide whether or not it is safe to leave a tween at home. It is obvious that not every tween will be ready for the responsibility at the same time, but every tween will reach a time when he is ready.
The Basic Principles on How to Teach a Tween about First Aid
Perhaps the most important thing to teach a tween about first aid is making sure that he will remain calm in any situation. No matter what injury or medical emergency occurs when he is temporarily left alone in the home, a parent can teach a kid how to avoid panicking by showing personal calmness in an emergency. In this way, a tween will take direction from the parent.
Teach a tween how to use the first aid kit correctly, and make sure the kit is fully stocked with the appropriate items. Conduct a fun, yet serious, course with a tween about how to handle emergency medical situations such as treating burns, scrapes or other injuries which unexpectedly occur within a household. Use a child's favorite stuffed animals or even a sibling to practice on.
Give him a thorough lesson on how to call emergency numbers, a trusted neighbor, and the mobile number that a parent should have on-hand, in case he needs help. More importantly, prevention is still the best method, so make sure to instill the value of avoiding injuries in the first place. The common mishaps that happen in a home when a child is alone include:
- Animal bites – Teach a child to treat pets with respect.
- Burns – These can come from water being too hot, using the oven unsupervised, and eating food that is cooked too long, especially soups.
- Choking
- Cuts and scraps
No matter how careful one may be as a parent, and no matter how a home is child proofed, emergencies and accidents do happen. Once they do occur, it will give a parent utter peace of mind to know that she did her part in learning how to teach a tween about first aid so he can handle any emergencies that may crop up.
 |
