Color Me Safe – A Coloring Book from CDC's Injury Center
Check out the new coloring book, Color Me Safe! This new CDC resource tells the rhyming story of the "Safe Family" who take steps to protect themselves at home, on the road, and at play.
A Real Problem
Injuries are the leading cause of death for young people from birth through age 19. Not only this, but every year, 9.2 million babies, children, and teens are injured severely enough to need treatment in emergency departments (ED). These injuries are commonly from burns, drowning, falls, poisoning, and motor vehicle crashes. Treatment for these injuries totals a staggering $300 billion a year.
Color Me Safe
Color Me Safe is a coloring book designed for children ages four to seven. Throughout the book, the Safe Family takes simple steps to prevent injuries, such as installing smoke alarms and using child safety seats. Children can have fun coloring the pictures and reading about the Safe Family.
Color Me Safe can help parents talk with their children about safety at home and on the go. Teachers can integrate the story and messages into Pre-K and early grade school curricula and share copies with parents and children at health and safety events.
Download or order a free copy of Color Me Safe today!
Tips for Prevention
Kids can't always protect themselves. They need your help! Follow these tips to help keep children safe from injuries at home, on the road, and at play:
Burns
- Install and maintain smoke alarms in your home.
- Develop and practice a family fire escape plan.
- Set your water heater's thermostat to 120 degrees Fahrenheit or lower.
- Use safe cooking practices, such as never leaving food unattended on the stove.
Drownings
- Install a four-sided isolation fence, with self-closing and self-latching gates, around backyard swimming pools.
- Learn cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and get recertified every two years.
- Supervise young children at all times around bathtubs, swimming pools, and natural bodies of water.
Falls
- Use playground equipment that is properly designed and maintained, and that has a soft landing surface material below.
- Use home safety devices, such as guards on windows that are located above ground-level, stair gates, and guard rails.
- Supervise young children at all times around fall hazards, like stairs and playground equipment.
Poisonings
- Store medicines and other toxic products such as cleaning solutions in locked or childproof cabinets.
- Put the poison control number, 1-800-222-1222, on or near every home telephone.
- Dispose of unused, unneeded, or expired prescription drugs.
Road Traffic Injuries
- Use appropriate child safety seats.
- If you have a teenage driver, sign an agreement in order to limit risky driving, such as having multiple passengers and driving at night.
- Transport children under age 13 in the back seat of your vehicle.
- Make sure children and adolescents wear bicycle and motorcycle helmets.
Protect the Ones You Love: Child Injuries Are Preventable is a CDC initiative to raise parents' awareness about the leading causes of child injury and how they can be prevented. Free materials—many available in both English and Spanish—include fact sheets, CDC's first report on child injury, state-based data, podcasts, e-cards, and more.
More Information
CDC Resources
- CDC: Protect the Ones You Love Web site
- CDC: Color Me Safe
- CDC Healthy Homes Web site
- CDC Data Report on Child Injuries
eCards
Podcasts
- Burns [PODCAST (English) - 2:58 minutes]
- Drowning [PODCAST (English) - 3:05 minutes]
- Falls [PODCAST (English) - 2:52 minutes]
- Poisoning [PODCAST (English) - 2:34 minutes]
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