Teaching a Preschooler About 9-1-1! - Ogdensburg,NY

At first I thought you meant Sept. 11th and I was like - what??? Sorry, this New Yorker's mind will always go back to that day when I see 9-1-1.

Anyway... I think you should give firm examples. If mommy is ever on the floor and she can't talk to you, call 911. If grandma ever falls and she can't get up, call 911.

And keep reminding her what means she should call. She'll get it.

I taught my son around that age. I told him that if I was ever sleeping and he couldn't wake me up, or if he ever saw me fall and hit my head that he would call. We talked about how minor injuries don't count and that it's really only for times that he can't get me to respond to him. We also talked about fires and to always call for a fire, plus a little bit about getting outside the house.

ETA: I also would give him scenarios and have him say whether or not it's appropriate to call. So after explaining it to her, ask questions like:
1. If mommy falls and bumps her knee, do you call?
2. If your sister scrapes her elbow, do you call?
3. If mommy falls and hits her head and can't talk to you, do you call?
4. If you see a fire, do you call?
5. If you can't find your sneaker and it's time to leave the house, do you call?
6. If mommy takes a nap and you can't wake her up, do you call?

Make some of them funny, too, so she's interested in talking about it and "playing" along while you ask the questions.

I taught my son about 911 at around that age, and we did it via this humorous back-and-forth:

If your nose itches, do you call 911? Nooooo.

If you're thinking about zebras, do you call 911? Noooo.

If you can't find your favorite train, do you call 911? Noooo.

If you need a band-aid, do you call 911? Noooo.

If a grownup falls down and you can't wake them up, do you call 911? Yessss.

If you can keep it light and appeal to preschool humor, you should be able to help her understand the distinction without scaring her. And, I firmly believe that it's better for kids to call 911 when they don't really need to than not to know how to call at all. So you're doing the right thing.

I think this is a great thing to teach and age appropriate. The role play questions suggested below are all excellent. When my kids were that age, I kept it rather simple. If they were unable to awaken me (after trying things like tickling or pinching me) then they should call 911. We practiced this. We also talked about the difference between sleeping and if someone was really sick. A sick person wouldn't awake if you pinched them, whereas a sleeping person most likely would.

In the event of a fire, they were taught to go to the neighbors and then call 911.

When my kids were 5 and 3 I had to travel alone with them on a 3 day trip across the country. The 2nd night at the hotel I became violently ill very quickly. I vaguely remember starting to pass out after about 30 seconds of the illness onset and my daugther telling her brother to call 911. Everything turned out ok, but it really scared me to think that had I not taught them about 911 they would have been all alone not knowing what to do.

Check your library - there may be a book or video about this that you can use.

I would say that at this age she has no valid concept of when to use this or when not to. I would never teach a child this young to pick up the phone and dial any numbers. At this age we're still teaching the kids that phones are for grown ups only and not toys.

I just told my kids that the only time they would need to call 9-1-1 would be if mommy & daddy say it's okay or mommy and daddy are hurt badly enough that they do not respond to them. I told them calling 9-1-1 is very serious and you can't call because you're mad at someone or a little scrape. My kids are currently 9 & 6 and we still talk about when you should call 9-1-1 and what you should tell them.

I told my son about 9-1-1 this is what i did
"OK honey if mommy faints or does not wake up press these numbers.But if mommy just falls or bumps into something i am ok.If you smell smoke,i want you to go get me really fast,then (hes almost 3 and we put a child lock,might have to take that off) go outside and don't go back in.

Like mommy C i ask those questions to like
1.I fell down and i cant get up,do you call 9-1-1?
2.Daddy bumped into the table,do you call 9-1-1?
3.if you lost your toy,do you call 9-1-1?
I ask a lot more and he seems like he gets it.I still teach him though,Teach your child in till you feel in your gut your child gets it.So in case of an emergency your child can call.

As a retired police officer who worked in the 911 center, I think she's too young. She is not mature enough to understand the concept. She is not able to comprehend the meaning of emergency nor of using the phone to get help. She will "practice" dialing once you show her how to do so. I've heard the little ones making such calls. The phone becomes an object to explore. It's best to teach preschoolers to stay off the phone. I've known of 911 calls accidentally connected by kids playing on the phone.

It is extremely unlikely that she will ever have need of this information. Please do not try to teach her how to use 911. Instead teach her to go find an adult any time she needs help. Make friends with a neighbor and show her how to get help from them if you are seriously thinking that you will have an emergency requiring her to get help.

I also suggest that teaching a 3 yo about life threatening emergencies can be scary to them. Let them continue to think that you're invincible for awhile longer. A 3 yo certainly does not need to know that mommy could fall to the floor and die unless she's able to call 911. That is too much responsibility for a little one.

Four year olds have saved peoples lives by calling 911. Maybe 3 1/2 is too young to actaully call, but if you start telling her about the option now it is good. My daughter's pre-school class they teach them and she is only 2 and 1/2. They practice on a toy phone.