"Paul Kelly" wrote in message
...

"Trevor Barton" wrote in message
...
David wrote:
More children drown in the bath than in garden ponds and most children
who drown in ponds are between 1 and 2 yrs old who shouldn't be out
unsupervised anyway, supervise then educate, don't childproof the
world

Quite. Exposure to some degree of danger is part of the way all
children
learn about the world and its hazards. Education, no matter how young
the child, is a more responsible attitude to take than removing dangers.
You aren't going to be able to remove the dangers for ever, start, now,
to
realise that, and you'll all be better off as the child grows up.

Trev

So, you have a hot iron and need to leave the room to get something, so
you
say to your 2 year old "Don't touch" ?

In the garden, you have a bonfire. You go away and leave it while your 2
year old plays in the garden?

You have a garden pond and take no physical precautions to keep your 2
year
old out of the pond?

Of course. Both points of view have some validity.

It is unwise to be overprotective, and to bring up children without
educating them in personal safety strategies is foolish, but sensible
precautions *should* be taken until children are old enough to act on their
own behalf.

Be nice if each child came with an indicator as to when this point had been
reached, but they don't.

--
Brian
"I know about kittens and knitting. Will that do?"