When should you start teaching your children safety measures? Well do we not tell our toddlers, “don’t touch. . . HOT”. How young is too young when learning lifesaving skills? At what age do you teach your children the purpose and how to call 911. Do your children need to know their name, parents names, phone numbers and address when they enter public school? In many places this is a requirement for those kids to know. There IS a safety class for just about every age group and here are a few of those classes. You can also gain valuable knowledge without the official full length training course that offers a certification. Keep in mind this is a presentation and not a training. There is a great toddler/preschool program that I offer and it is curriculum through the American Red Cross which is Scrubby Bear. Scrubby Bear offers great stories on what germs are and how to wash hands and reduce the risk of becoming sick. The kids really love the songs you teach them in regards to washing hands and it can be extremely interactive and animated to make it fun and a learning experience for the youngest of children. The seconds step up from toddler program is the five – 10 year olds. There is another great youth program that is also a curriculum the American Red Cross puts out and that is BAT “Basic Aid Training”. We cover great activities regarding bicycle safety, playing outdoors and going into the basic first aid for minor cuts and scrapes as well as when to call for assistance from an adult or even calling 9-1-1. This class for this age group is great for earning a first aid patch in Cub Scouts and Brownies. We end the course with the foundation of how to build a first aid kit in the event they are injured. Stepping up to the Teen/Tweens we have a great program which is babysitter training. Babysitter training gets a little more in-depth when it comes to caring for younger children. We teach the participants diaper changing skills, bottle feeding, being leaders as well as basic first aid which includes choking victims. There is an advanced version of the class that is the Babysitter Bootcamp which is typically taught over two days which also certifies this age group in pediatric CPR and first aid. When teaching lifesaving skills, this is a great place to start because the tweens, typically have difficulty in accomplishing compressions on adults. Another great class for teenagers is Wilderness and Remote First Aid. This class requires that participants be at least 14 years of age by the end of the course. We teach extensive first aid and lifesaving skills in the event we cannot immediately pick up a phone and call 9-1-1. The latter course was created by Boy Scouts of America and satisfies requirements for badges/patches that can be earned. Moving into adulthood we have the typical lay responder CPR and First Aid classes as well as Healthcare provider classes. One of the greatest things our particular company offers is a choice of curriculum. We offer certifications from American Red Cross, American Heart Association, and National Safety Council. We offer classes to industry down to someone wanting to take it because they have a new grandchild in the family. Last but not least we have our seniors. Seniors not only need to be on top of the first aid health and safety and we also dig deeper in medical first aid for strokes and other senor related issues such as medication management, importance of taking medications as directed as well as systems to help and remind them if they had taken medication. The older we get the more medications we take and the higher risk of drug interactions becomes an issue. I am betting you can ask a local instructor if there is a class or a time they can come talk to you about some of the procedures without going through the entire certification training course. Call your fire department, training center, or an independent CPR instructor and set up a breakfast learning or a lunch and learn that last about an hour and you can get some great valuable information in that short period of time.  This valuable presentation may spark interest in the group going through with an official certification class.