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All parents (or almost) repeat these words several times a day: “Be careful!” A little phrase that serves as a warning, but that children no longer listen to as much, just by hearing it. What are the alternatives to these two little words? Two parenting experts give us their 10 other sentences, to also effectively warn children.
“Be careful, you risk falling!” This sentence, all parents (or almost!) know it by heart. However, by warning our child of the potential dangers he could encounter, we transmit our anxieties to him, on the one hand, and we also unconsciously encourage him not to take any risks. However, it is essential for a child to play, to test, to try certain things, to measure themselves against the unknown and form their own experience.
Ten Alternatives to Saying “Be Careful”
So how do you say “be careful” differently? Here are ten phrases, proposed by Kristin Gallant and Deena Margolin, parenting experts, to warn the child differently. In an Instagram post, they list ten expressions, to better empower little ones:
- Use your hands to hold yourself firmly.
- What is your plan there?
- Do you feel safe?
- Before you throw this away, look around you.
- Say “help” if you need my help.
- Do you see this obstacle in front of you?
- Look at the ground where you are walking.
- How can your hands and feet help you?
- What could you do in this situation?
- Did you check that the branch/other was solid before sitting down?
Discovering the world, an essential step in the good development of a child
Children discover the world and it is essential for them to experiment. The most worried parents are therefore tempted to keep telling them to “be careful”. “If the child is safe at that moment, hearing their parent tell them to be careful may mean for them not to take risks, and to be hypervigilantand on guard at all times” explain Kristin Gallant and Deena Margolin.
Children eventually get tired of these words and no longer hear them, nor do they really learn what is dangerous.
In reality, these words must therefore be reserved for truly dangerous situations, “like sharp objects, fire or even crossing the road without looking” conclude the two experts.
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