BC Parent Article – Jessi Cruickshank
Earlier this year, the Palisades wildfires tore through the Los Angeles area, displacing thousands of people from their homes. I never thought that my family would be caught in the smoke of one of the most destructive fires in California history.
When we were evacuated from our home, it was total panic. Grabbing our screaming kids out of their beds, ripping paintings off the walls, and shoving everything in the back of our car. And then in a moment of pure chaos, I turned back… not for sentimental baby photos or precious family heirlooms, but for my kid’s pet lizard.
By the time I had returned to the car, our neighborhood was swallowed in thick smoke. My 7-year-old twin boys were crying, and my husband was driving, so I basically tossed our lizard to my 3-year-old daughter (who had no idea what was going on and was therefore the calmest person in the car). I thought to myself: “If your toddler is the most trustworthy person in your family, something has gone VERY wrong.”
Driving out of a city engulfed in flames, the truth hit: I never once talked to my family about what to do in the case of a fire… and I mean really talk about it. We had NO plan. My kids do 10 fire drills per year in school and we had done ZERO in our home. If I’m being honest, I thought our smoke alarms were enough… and if I’m being really honest, I thought it would never happen to us.
I needed a way to engage my twin boys and get them involved in making a plan. I needed to find the Minecraft of fire safety initiatives…. That’s when I discovered Kidde’s Cause For Alarm program, an annual fire safety initiative that helps address gaps in education and access to fire safety resources. We now have a fire safety plan that my kids want to practice every day… and this time, it includes our lizard.
Our kids are growing up in a digital world. Technology isn’t just a part of their lives, it’s their language. So instead of asking them to put down the screens, why not bring the learning onto the screen in a way that actually excites them? Kidde’s Prepare. Plan. Practice is a free digital fire drill simulator that Canadians can use to learn fire safety tips and practice their escape plan at home. It uses augmented reality and gamified learning to bring fire education to families in a new way.
Your journey with the tool starts by opening your phone’s camera to show what your home could look like filled with smoke (my kids LOVE this part. Then in ‘Learn Mode,’ you explore your space while engaging with interactive fire safety modules. Suddenly you’re dropped into “Practice Mode”, where you’re put to the test in a race to escape your smoke-filled home in under two minutes. The tool does not suggest you choose a superhero character for this part, but… I do! It works for my kids every time. In the end, you’re brought to the Safety Hub, directing you to other resources to further your fire safety education.
Remember how fun it was to make treasure maps as a kid? Channel that energy. Sit down with your little ones, grab some crayons, stickers, glitter, and sketch out your house together. Label the rooms, draw your exits, and mark a big X where your outside meeting spot is. Now you’ve killed two birds with one stone: you’ve prepared them for a fire emergency and made a beautiful art project (to put on the pile with the MANY OTHERS you promise you’ll put up on a wall one day).
Children love to feel like leaders, so let them be one. Appoint your child as an official “Fire Captain” of your household. You can even use it as an opportunity to play dress up – put on a fire hat or bunker gear to take it a step further. Give them the job of helping to remind the family to test smoke and carbon monoxide alarms each month, or lead the family fire drill. When they take the lead, they’re not just playing, they’re learning and growing.
Repetition builds retention, especially for kids. Pick a month out of the year (I recommend Fire Prevention Month in October) and make it a weekly tradition to focus on just one fire safety rule at a time. Each week, ask your child to recall the rule, explain it in their own words, or even teach it to another family member. For example: “What do we do if we hear the smoke alarm?” By spacing out learning, you help your child retain the information in a way that feels manageable.
Fire safety education doesn’t have to be limited to the same old pamphlets or classroom handouts. There are so many creative, hands-on ways to help your kids learn about fire safety.
At the end of the day, we can’t protect our kids from everything but we can help prepare them… and that peace of mind is everything. In my home, I try to lead with fun. After one of the most terrifying nights of my life… I’m finding ways to make fire safety just that – a fun, engaging part of our routine.
Now if you’ll excuse me, Spider Man, Dogman and Chase want to do another fire drill in their pajamas.
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