Explaining the emergency call to children and practising the emergency call with children is part of fire safety education. We take today's European 112 Day as an opportunity to give you tips on how to explain the emergency call to children.
Explaining emergency calls to children at an early stage
Children should learn how to make an emergency call at an early age. This is important in case something happens at home or on the road. In an emergency, every emergency call can save lives. Children as young as kindergarten age are able to make an emergency call, provided that they talk about it in advance and practise the emergency call with children.
Facts about the emergency call 112
To explain the emergency call to children, you should first inform yourself and then talk to the children. Here are a few facts about 112.
- Emergency call alerts the fire brigade and/or rescue services/emergency doctor.
- Telephone number 112 can be used in all EU countries.
- Emergency call is available 24/7 and automatically forwards the call to the local control centre.
- Emergency call is free of charge from landlines and mobile phones.
- Reasons for making an emergency call: traffic accident with injured person, fire, person in severe pain, shortness of breath or if a person is unresponsive.
The 5 W-questions are asked during the emergency call:
- WHERE did it happen?
- WHO calls?
- WHAT happened?
- HOW MANY injured/affected?
- WAITING for enquiries! Help is on the way.
Feel free to use our children's emergency card to practise making an emergency call with your child. Hang the emergency card at child height near your phone. Download children's emergency card (pdf).
Practice emergency call with children
To help children understand what the emergency call is and what it is used for, role plays are suitable. For example, a traffic accident could be re-enacted with toy cars or a person at home keels over and is no longer responsive. Of course, these role plays are not meant to scare people, but to show in a playful way how important and correct it is to make an emergency call and what is discussed on the phone with the control centre.
Mnemonic devices are also a great way to explain the emergency call to children. The arithmetic problem 1 + 1 = 2 would be such a mnemonic. By the way, it's no coincidence that the European Day of 112 takes place every year on 11 February (11.2)!
Even if the child may not remember 112 in an emergency or have a phone nearby, any child can get an adult to help make the emergency call. Ways to attract attention or where to go from home to find other adults should also be practised.