Children can sometimes develop a big interest in trucks they see around them. Trucks are big, powerful machines and can seem very cool to kids. Unfortunately, curiosity and the desire to take a closer look can have some tragic consequences for young ones.
Most of us don’t consider the places kids can come into contact with trucks, but garbage trucks show up on residential streets every day and children may be able to get close to trucks in parking lots, in stores, at truck shows, and even in their yard when a delivery truck drops by. It’s easy to tell kids not to play near trucks or warn your child against approaching them, but they are likely to forget when they see a cool machine they want to see up close.
There are a few ways you can help communicate the truck safety message to kids and keep your child safer:
- Be consistent and clear in your safety message, and repeat it often. Use the same words when explaining ideas like “never stand behind a truck or near a truck” or “never play near garbage bins or in the street.” Use words your kids understand and ask them to repeat back the rules in their own words. It can be useful to ask younger kids to create a truck safety poster for your home. That way, they get to actually engage with the rules, so they understand them better. Hang the poster where you can see it and talk about it.
- Make the safety message fun. Getting a lecture about safety is dreary for kids and they may tune out. To get the message clear, consider showing pictures or videos. Or, get them involved. With younger kids, you might want to explain how far they need to stay away from trucks. Explain they need to stay at least one truck length away them have them picture or draw a line to indicate how big that is. Interactive learning can be more effective and easier to remember.
- Give your child a safe way to see trucks. If your child is really interested in trucks, take them to a truck show or a museum with different vehicles. It can be a safe way for them to satisfy their curiosity and you can talk more about safety in the museum or at the show.
- Supervise closely. Even if you’re confident your kids know about traffic and truck safety, children can get excited about a truck when they see one and end up forgetting the rules in their curiosity. Even if you go over safety regularly, proper supervision is still the best way to prevent pedestrian collisions involving trucks.
If your child has been injured in a pedestrian or truck accident in South Florida, contact Flaxman Law Group at any time to speak with a Hollywood trucking accident attorney. Your first consultation with our compassionate legal team is free and comes with no obligation. You can contact us by calling 1-866-352-9626 (1-866-FLAXMAN) or by using our website.