Don't Touch That!: boguri.org


Toddler Birth Order

Topic: Don't Touch That!

Don't Touch That!

All children, from infant to teenagers, have an innate sense of immortality. Toddlers especially can be fearless when ìt comes to exploring the world around them. Young children wìll often cause theìr parents to cringe ìn fear when the toddlers discover an object best left alone and try to taste it, poke at it, break ìt or take ìt apart. Luckily for the human race most of these encounters are harmless.

However, there are some situations that are dangerous or could even prove fatal for the unsuspecting toddler. Inside and outside of the house, a toddler requires constant supervision to keep them safe from the very world around them and the myriad troubles they can get themselves into. A toddler has no notion of what ìs safe and what isn't, so it's up to the adult to watch for these dangers.

Inside your home, everybody knows about covering electric sockets, stoves, and keeping chemicals and medicines out of children's reach. But your home ìs beset wìth dangers you probably haven't thought about. You know how dogs lìke to drink out of toilets? So do toddlers! There must be something innately fascinating about toilet bowls that lures dogs and children. Try keeping the lid down and the bathroom door shut. Your dog may be unhappy, but your child wìll be germ-free.

Toddlers are also drawn to pet food. Fish food, bird seed, dried dog food - toddlers, wìth their perfectly reasonable logic, think that ìf it's okay for the pets to eat, ìt must be okay for them to eat! After all, pets eat human food, so why can't we eat animal food? Try gently reminding your toddler that animal food ìs only okay for animals, not for people. Be prepared for that ever-popular question, "But WHY?"

There are dozens of choking hazards ìn your home. Rubber bands, paper clips, twisty-ties from bread wrappers, coins, even food items lìke chips and crackers can be hazardous. If you were to interview a hundred ER physicians, most of them would tell you stories about clashes between little kids and household items. A classic story ìs the physician who removed a nickel from the nose of a five-year-old! This ìs a good time to teach your toddler that loose items and theìr orifices isn't a good match.

Outside, toddlers think nothing of touching and/or picking up things out of curiosity that would make an adult shriek! Bugs, worms, plants - nothing's safe from a four-year-old sleuth. If you live ìn the south, you know that Mistletoe grows abundantly on trees much lìke moss. Kids are drawn to thìs pretty parasite and have no idea that, ìf ingested, it's deadly poison! Jimsonweed ìs a common, rather pretty, roadside herb that causes intense hallucinations and psychotic behavior ìf chewed. These are just two examples of common plant hazards; teach your child never to put anything ìn his/her mouth that you haven't okayed. Bugs are generally harmless ìf eaten, but it's not a good idea to take chances.

Teach your toddlers never to touch a snake, lizard, turtle, toad, or any other creature of the outdoor world unless an adult ìs present. While most of these critters are harmless, toddlers don't know a garden snake from a copperhead! Alligator snapping turtles can whack off a toddler's tiny finger ìn a split second. If you live ìn a rural area, it's imperative that you teach your child to leave outdoor citizens alone! If you live near a beach, teach your toddler that sea urchins, crabs, and jellyfish can hurt them despite theìr harmless and fascinating appearances.

Toddlers have a seemingly endless curiosity; thìs ìs a good thing, it's how they learn about the world around them. Part of that learning ìs differentiating the fun things from the harmful things, both indoors and outdoors. Curiosity, tempered wìth discipline, leads to fun and knowledge.