Parents teach children not to play with knives because it is
dangerous. Children must also learn basic knife safety. Parents should take the
time to teach their children the safety rules at an age appropriate time. Here
are five tips for teaching your kids to be safe with knives.
Intended Purpose
Children should learn to never use a knife for anything but
its intended purpose. One example is to never use a knife to pry something
apart. This is a dangerous action that could end in disaster when the knife
slips, resulting in a cut to the fingers or hands.
Push Away from the Body
Teach the child to push away from his or her body. The sharp
end of the knife should never point towards the child. When making the slice
into an object, the child should push the blade forward in the slicing action.
If the knife slips when a child is moving the blade towards his or her body,
the child could end up with a nasty cut.
Transporting Knives
When a child is carrying a knife from one place to another,
teach him or her to walk carefully. It is the same general rule as carrying a
pair of scissors. The pointy end of the knife should never face towards the
child and never pointing straight ahead. Most danger can be avoided if the
child is taught to wrap knives in a dish towel prior to moving them from one
place to another when the child is younger.
Never Lick the Blade
Licking the knife is tempting, but it should never occur.
Children are most prone to do this when icing a cake. Instead of using a knife
for this task, use a spatula that allows the child to lick the icing off
without danger. If possible, offer a spoon tasting to the child as a reward for
not licking the knife.
Use a Fork to Hold Items in Place
Teach the child to use a fork to hold the item in place
rather than his or her fingers. Placing fingers on the object that is being cut
places the child at higher risk for cuts. Using a hard object such as a fork
will hold the item in place while lowering the risk for harm.
Children can safely use knives for the rest of their lives
if taught these few basic rules. Parents often spend a lot of time explaining
to children that they should not play with knives. While this is important,
parents should also be teaching the basic rules of how to use knives safely. If
children are taught well, there is no reason that the child cannot participate
in cooking activities involving knives at an appropriate age.
1 comment:
These are excellent tips. Very good written article.
-SafetyKnife.net
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