January 2021: Sledding Safety
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Winter is here and many families are looking for ways to get outside. Sledding is a popular and fun activity that children of all ages enjoy, but every year, thousands of children end up going to emergency departments across the U.S. for sledding injuries like concussions and broken bones. Luckily, all it takes is a little preparation and planning to prevent many of these injuries. Keep children safer on the hill this year by sharing these tips:
Equipment Check
Helmet: Make sure your child has a helmet they can wear. A snow sports helmet works best, but if your child doesn’t have one, a bicycle helmet is the next best choice. If your child needs to wear a hat to keep warm, make sure to readjust their helmet.
Sled: Buy a sled that can be steered, not snow tubes or round disks. Check for and fix sleds with broken or missing parts. Follow manufacturer guidelines for the number of passengers the sled can safely hold.
Environment Check
Hill: Pick the right hill before the snow falls. Look for hills that do not have any trees, fences, posts, or other objects children could run into. Make sure there is plenty of space for the sled to come safely to a stop at the bottom of the hill, away from roads and water (ponds, rivers, etc.).
Parent Present: Join your child at the sledding hill. Adults see dangers that children might not see and can quickly help if an injury does happen.
On The Hill
Sled Basics: Show your child how to sit feet-first and steer the sled. Practice on a small hill before moving to larger hills.
Space: Teach your child how to stay out of the path of other sledders.
Read more about sledding safety and check out our toolkit (including some new resources!).
2021 Activities
We are excited to announce our 2021 toolkit topics and outreach week dates:
Home Exercise Equipment Safety: February 8 – 14
Lawnmower Safety: April 19 – 25
Sun Safety: July 19 – 25
Safe Sleep (Toolkit Refresh): October 11 – 17
In case you missed it, we recently released our 2021 Social Media Calendar. Download the calendar here.
Take Action
Every month, we are promoting a new action that each family can take to keep their children safer. This month, we want every family to check the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission’s recall list to see if new gifts have been recalled. Just because it’s for sale, doesn't mean it’s safe. View the CPSC’s list of recalled products here: https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls/
Follow along every month for a new action, and share with us how you're preventing child injury in your home!
Coming Up
On Our Twitter Calendar
Jan. 4 - 10: New Year’s Resolutions: Resolve to be Safe
Jan. 11 - 17: Frostbite/Winter Exposure Safety
Jan. 18 - 24: National Radon Action Month/Carbon Monoxide Safety
Jan. 25 - 31: National Winter Sports TBI Awareness Month
Events
Attend the webinar, “Partnering for Child Safety: Fatality Review Teams and State Title V Programs,” taking place on Thursday, January 14th from 2 - 3PM EST. Abby Collier of the National Center for Fatality Review and Prevention will describe the fatality review process, with a focus on data collection, and provide examples of how fatality review supports Title V work. Additionally, written guidance on how fatality review can support national performance measures on adolescent mental health, including youth suicide, infant safe sleep and smoking during pregnancy will be highlighted and distributed. Karen Nash of the Children’s Health Alliance of Wisconsin will share her agency’s innovative partnership between Child Death Review (CDR) and Title V. Wisconsin is disseminating CDR recommendations to appropriate, parallel Title V programs working with target populations. Register (for free) here.