Learning made fun

How Do You Warn Young Children About Stranger Danger?

Like the rest of the nation I'm upset about the abduction of April Jones and hoping she is safely reunited with her family soon. I remember as a young child being told never to talk to strangers, take sweets from strangers, get into strangers' cars etc. I instilled the same fear of strangers into my 3 children.

The difficulty I have is how to inform children that some strangers are 'bad people' whilst at the same time protecting the child's innocence. It's horrific to go into details about what some strangers may do to some children. As parents, Rob and I can't remember telling our children any reason why not to talk to strangers, apart from telling them some strangers may want to take them away from us to live with them. I know some parents mention sex crimes, murders etc. but I chose not to do so, on purpose.

Childhood, I believe, should be an age of innocence, so how do you explain about stranger danger to young children? With my own children they grew up knowing some strangers weren't nice but the majority were. If they were with Rob or I they could reply to questions from strangers. If they were by themselves then they weren't to speak to strangers just in case they were 'bad' strangers. When my children were young the James Bulger case with the child murdered by other children was in the news. The main way I protected my children was the fact that they were always with a responsible adult. If my children were playing outside an adult was with them watching them.

How have you dealt with the stranger issue and warned your children? It would be great if we could share tips to keep our children safe.

 Photo by Flickr xoxoryan

Wasps - How To Avoid Being Stung And What To Do If You Are.

As a Mum I know that I'm not alone in worrying about the threat of wasp stings in the Summer. In this post I will share some tips on how to avoid wasp stings and what to do if you are stung.

As well as being unpleasant, in some people stings can cause severe reactions and over 300,000 people in the UK suffer allergic reactions to them. Would you know how to treat anaphylactic shock if a child or an adult with you experienced it?

The following may help parents to minimise wasp threats:
• Encourage your child to stay calm in the presence of wasps. The best advice is to move away slowly; waving arms or swatting wasps will increase their tendency to sting
• Wasps are attracted to bright colours. If you’re planning to spend time outdoors pastel shades will help prevent your child being targeted
• Don’t walk barefoot outside and look out for wasps before sitting down
• Wasps will make a beeline for sweet drinks and foods. Encourage children to use lids and wrap food as soon as you’ve finished eating
• Ensure children wipe their faces and hands after eating sweet things like lollies and ice-creams to minimize further temptation for wasps

If you are stung, unless you have a known allergic response to a sting, simple first aid is all that is required
•Wash and clean the sting as soon as possible, handy wipes are excellent for this
•Apply ice to the sting to cool it down and take the redness out of it
•Taking a pain killer can help with the discomfort
•If you have allergic reactions then use an antihistamine and seek medical advice immediately
•Some people say to use vinegar on wasp stings but this is not proven scientifically.

Anaphylactic reactions can range in intensity, from minor to severe. Due to this, it is advisable for parents who think their child may be suffering an anaphylactic shock to call 999 immediately and seek professional medical help. The Anaphylaxis Campaign advises the following steps:
• Call 999 immediately to seek medical help
• Keep the patient calm
• Lay the patient down, with their feet raised to increase the blood flow to the heart
• If there is a sign the patient will be sick, turn them onto their side into the recovery position until the ambulance arrives

Dr Shuaib Nasser, Consultant in Allergy, Addenbrookes NHS Trust Hospital, Cambridge and member of The Anaphylaxis Campaign Clinical and Scientific Advisory Panel comments, “While just 0.5% of the population suffers an acute allergic reaction to wasp stings, we always advise simple precautions to minimize any risks. If you or your children suffer a severe allergic reaction after a bee or wasp sting it is important to seek medical help immediately and then ask your GP to refer you to an Allergy Specialist.”

UKWaspWatch map tracks sightings of wasps to create a picture of wasp hotspots across the country. 20p will be donated to the Anaphylaxis charity every time a person logs a wasp or wasps’ nest sighting onto UKWaspWatch throughout the summer.

I would be interested to know of any tips you have for avoiding wasps or for treating wasp stings.

Photo by Flickr Sean Tiernan

Bumps and fusses

I  HAVEN'T actually been asked my views on this topic but I've decided to share them with you anyway!

On Friday I was 'lucky' enough to sit opposite a family on a one and a half hour train journey. Their was a Mum, Dad and a toddler of about 18 months. The little boy was actually quite good despite his parents best efforts to liven up the train journey for everyone in the carriage.

After he had had his lunch of chips and crisps he was given toys to build towers in the aisle of the train. Obviously, although it appeared to shock his parents, the beakers were rolling down the carriage and the toddler had to crawl around everyones legs to rescue them. Also unsurprisingly, although his parents were surprised, he fell over whilst jumping around the carriage and bumped his head. The little boy began to scream and his Mum cuddled him. So far so good, but as the toddler settled she kept reminding him of his bumped head. As soon as he calmed down he was asked if his head still hurt, what a big bang he had etc. Inevitably as soon as he was reminded the toddler screamed again! This carried on for quite a while.

As a Mum and a psychologist, I wanted to share my advice with you. If a child is hurt of course comfort them and assess the degree of the injury. If the child is just a bit shaken up then try and distract them with a toy or game. If the child does calm down then don't remind them of their accident. Watch the child to see if a bump comes up or if there is obviously something which shouldn't be ignored. However, if possible, just rub the sore knee, for example, better or give it a kiss and carry on.

I was tempted to offer advice to the Mum on the train but felt it was wrong to. However, if anyone has a question relating to children or working Mums then please feel free to ask me.

Photo by Flickr Thomas Rockstar

Ask Karen: Can we help with your development dilemmas?

WITH a degree in psychology, focusing on children and as a former play specialist at Great Ormond Street Hospital, I have a wealth of experience in advising parents on helping their children learn through having fun.

My psychology background has given me an insight into the cognitive development of children which means I have been trained in recognising how a child reacts to and interacts with the world around it.

It's an area I've always wanted to explore and encourage in children.

I wanted to help each child attending Musical Minis achieve its full potential. Musical Minis is a structured programme encouraging cognitive, physical and emotional development through the use of music, instruments and stories.

Now, how can I help you?

Please get in touch with any dilemmas you feel I may be able to help with.

Here's a recent question posed: