Keeping Kids safe at moots etc

[R.Lewis]

Just wondered if anyone takes their Toddlers to Moots and how do you keep them out of trouble? Want to go to the moot this year but our little one (she'll be two then) is a proper handfull and into EVERYTHING! Worried about her and fires mainly. She knows what a fire is and seen one in fireplace and Hobo stove but not an open fire outside yet.

Sure some have taken toddlers without incident so any tips would be great..

 

[789987]

its all about the bushcraft

 

[unorthadox]

no flammable materials for clothing, keep hair tied back, try to keep gloves on her at all times so if she decides to touch anything hot or sharp, there is a little protection.

also some lessons in learning to use a knife, so if she picks one up she is less likely to cause injury,

to take it a step further, substuting a typical kids plastic knife with a very blunt steak knife or bushcraft knife at meal times for a few weeks before the moot may stop the urge to pick one up at the moot, maybe a bit too drastic but from experience, children do dangerous things out of curiosity of new things

 

[Bodge]

I think reins would be the only safe option at that age. You could pimp them up with a retractable dog lead to give your toddler more freedom.

 

[789987]

just give them a long stick to poke the fire and they'll be fine

 

[Toddy]

"just give them a long stick to poke the fire and they'll be fine "

Not at my fire they won't Kids waving smouldering sticks around will get told off, and any parent who complains will be asked bluntly, "Where were you ? "

Generally the kids at the meet ups and the Moot have been incredibly well behaved, and they are aged from literally a fortnight old, to teenagers.

Basically, your child is your responsibility.
It's a family friendly site with a lot of people there. It's expected that fires aren't to be played with, other people's tools are not to be touched, and that other folks tents, tarps, hammocks and kit are not disturbed.

That's it really
What a child does at their family camp area and fire is up to the parents.

If your toddler really is a handful, then yes, I too would suggest attentive parents and reins

I'm presuming here, but on the balance of experience I'm pretty sure I'm right, that you have childproofed your home. Folks come to the Moot to relax, learn, teach, enjoy the woods and the seashore, chill out in like minded company; and they don't childproof their lives.

We do leave tools lying at hand, we do leave camping equipment sitting around the fires, we do leave our tents and hammocks unattended when we're elsewhere on site.

I'm not trying to be offputting, many parents bring very young children along and have a brilliant time but the onus is on the parents to keep them safe, not on other folks to make the site safe for the children.
Kids aren't stupid though, they learn good practice very quickly
Courtesy starts young no reason you and your child shouldn't have a great time on site too

cheers,
Toddy

 

[789987]

i would tell em to stay away from the moany old ladies fire!

i've never been to one of your meets but ive taken my kids camping a lot and ive never had a problem other than them refusing to go to sleep!

 

[v-ness]

We took our little ones to the Comrie Meet last November.

They were 3.5 and 14 months then. Both kids had an absolue ball. We stayed in the Kata with the woodburning stove on and although they arent used to open fires or stoves neither touched them. I was very impressed with them

Although there were sharps lying around, neither child went near those either.

The only drawback taking them was that one of us had to always keep a close eye on them. It wont be possible for both parents to attend courses etc at the same time at the moot.

We are planning to take our two to the moot this year too and dont think there will be any problems. I think Toddy has summed it up well. Aslong as one of you is keeping a close eye on your wee one, you should be able to enjoy your time there too. Keeping her entertained is the key to success

There's our two anklebiters keeping busy at Crombie

Cheers
Ness

 

[Sniper]

i would tell em to stay away from the moany old ladies fire!

i've never been to one of your meets but ive taken my kids camping a lot and ive never had a problem other than them refusing to go to sleep!

That kind of attitude to a reasonable and sensible answer will win you no favours at any meet. As has already been said your kids are your responsibility, and it is you who will be looking after them. I can assure you if any child starts prodding at anybody else's fire they will be told off immediately and if it were mine the parents would be asked why their child is roaming about out of control. We are not disciplinarians by any stretch and we have few rules but the ones we do have are their for the protection and safety of all. Also plain good manners are expected from those who attend and everyone is treated as an adult and expected to act like one (excluding kids of course). We have had many children of all ages attend meets and have never had a problem as the rules are generally kept to, and the good manners eluded to have been shown. Nobody is against kids going provided the parents look after them. I'm sure you will look after your family responibly and your little one will be adored by all and there will be no problems.

 

[789987]

who said the kids were touching anybody else's precious fire?

all i said was give em a long stick and they'll be happy! in my experience if there water to throw stones in or a fire to poke and kids keep themselves entertained. again its obviously their parents responsibility to look after them - this wasnt ever in question until you rolled out your preconceived notions

 

[Chrisj]

We've not been to any meets from this forum but have taken our kids to festivals and camps and camping in general since they were babes in arms. We've always found it really easy to deal with.
We just treated it the same as going to a non child friendly elderly relatives house with lots of breakables in reach ie. LOTS of supervision. That said we have never let them touch things that don't belong to them anyway. My wife would go mad if they were going through HER handbag let alone someone else's so they soon learnt, and touching a strangers things in or out of their tent hasn't been a concern for a long, long time.
With regards fires a lot of camps we go to have permanently burning communal fires with axes and saws at hand and we explained in terms they can understand why they shouldn't touch things and the danger involved rather than a blanket ban with no explanation of why. I think if you explain your reasons kids are much more likely to listen and do as they are asked. It helped in some ways that one of them touched the iron when it was not quite cool when they were young (not hot enough to cause a burn but enough to feel what hot was) so if we say it is hot and could burn you they have some comprehension of what that means. I wouldn't recommend this as a method of intentionally teaching them I hasten to add!!!!
That said with due care they can get a lot out of it and it doesn't need to be that stressful if you think it through. As v-ness says keeping them occupied is the key to success. If they are fully immersed in something you want them to be doing they are less likely to try to find mischief to get up to.

 

[trixx]

any tips would be great..

Train it to behave. If that doesn't work, keep a hold of it at all times. If neither are possible, leave it at home.

No idea if this will work with toddlers, but it does the trick with gundogs.

 

[Toddy]

V-ness your children were a delight to have around No bother and exactly the kind of behaviour that made the meet up relaxing for everyone

789987, As for me moaning .....oh you are so right Why should other people become your de facto babysitters ? Why should every one else be responsible for your child's safety ?
Better that I state the acceptable behaviour clearly, rather than have every one else irritated and out of sorts.

I like people, I really do, and that includes children, I happily spend time with them, teach and enjoy their company; and from your response I firmly suspect that this 'old lady' will be young at heart long after you've hit grumpy old codgerdom

cheers,
Toddy

 

[789987]

please refer to post 10

 

[exarkun]

We have two children, 2 and 4. We find that as long as they are well taught, occupied and happy then they get along fine wherever we take them. We are not in to 'childproofing' anything. It serves us and them well as they learn what is acceptable and what is not. They are loads of teaching opportunities.

 

[Toddy]

please refer to post 10

Please refer to post 9

M

 

[Sniper]

A child + long stick + fire = child with long stick with burning ember at the end. Burning ember + excited running child = tent with burn hole or another child with a burn or ...or... simple. You were the person who condones children, sticks, and fires. No one has suggested you would not look after your child, I'm sure you will, but the notion of letting a toddler play with sticks around a fire is not the suggested way to make friends and influence people at a meet. There is a thread on here about campfire ettiquette but I just can't find it at the moment, it would be worth a look. This is about what the rules are for everyone around the fire the do's and don'ts well worth a look. We just want everyone to enjoy their time.

 

[Toddy]

We have two children, 2 and 4. We find that as long as they are well taught, occupied and happy then they get along fine wherever we take them. We are not in to 'childproofing' anything. It serves us and them well as they learn what is acceptable and what is not. They are loads of teaching opportunities.

That's responsible parenting
With the best will in the world there are somethings that adults, without young children of their own around, will do that they wouldn't bother about, even if they did when their own children were small. Simple things, like keeping bleach and cleaning stuffs out of the way, turning pot handles well out of a child's reach.....sometimes that's not so easy on a campfire, when to do so means the handles are over the heat too....that kind of thing.
Most folks do childproof to some extent, even if it is just the bleachy stuffs, but yes, I do agree, children learn very quickly what is and is not acceptable behaviour

cheers,
Toddy

 

[Spikey DaPikey]

I find a nice tree, a loose child and gaffa tape will work to stop them being a pain.....

Simple rules, you bring them, you look after them, and take responability for all there actions. They has not been any real problems with kids at the moot, but a few have had words spoken to them as and when needed.

 

[silentpaddler]

There's a sign in our local coffee shop that says: Unattended Children Will Be Given a Double Espresso and a Free Puppy...