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Safety Around Farms Education Limited is a non profit organisation which aims to provide young children between three and ten years of age with safety awareness knowledge and information so that they are better able to assess dangers and behave in a safe manner when living on or visiting a farm and at home.
Background
The "Farm Safety is Fun" Program has been created, due to the fact that:
"One child dies on average every 15 days in Australia through a farm related incident, a third of these being visitors to the farm" (Farmsafe Australia 2002) "More rural children under five years die as a result of an injury than those in suburban areas" (Kidsafe)
Children are more at risk of injury or death on a farm because:
- The farm is often both a family home and a work place
- Farm hazards are many and varied, with potential consequences of injury being severe or fatal eg drowning, run overs, entanglement, falls.
- Children grow and progress through stages of physical, mental and emotional development. Children are
not only smaller they see the world differently to adults, and they may not always be rational, cautious, or able to for see unsafe consequences.
(Farmsafe Australia Inc)
Research suggests, that It is particularly important to develop an awareness of dangers and protective behaviours at an early age because it is in the early years that children are more receptive to learning new skills.
The "Farm Safety is Fun" Program was developed by Vicki Connell (Kindergarten Teacher ) out of a perceived need for young children to:
- learn to recognise dangers
- behave safely on farms; and,
- learn about safe adult practices.
The"Farm Safety Is Fun" program has been endorsed by Farmsafe Australia and has been successfully trialled and evaluated by teachers and health workers in North East Victoria, parts of New South Wales and South Australia since 2002. Funding for the initial pilot program was received from the Foresthill Early Childhood Foundation and ANZ Alfred Felton Bequest and Auspiced by Beechworth Neighbourhood Centre. Current funding has been gratefully recieved from ANZ Felton Bequest and The William Buckland Foundation which has enabled the program to be taken to Primary Schools and Kindergartens throughout VIctoria free of charge in 2007 and 2008. In December 2008 John Deere sponsored the program to deliver 10 "Farm Safety is Fun" Resource kits to Early Childhood services in NSW in 2009. More Funding and or Sponsorship needs to be sought to enable the program to operate fully in 2009 and beyond and to enable to program to run into other states.
"Safety Around Farms Education" has five major components :-
- A Farm Safety Resource Kit:,containing resources such as; a farm model and safety signs, puppets, puzzles, games, picture kit, books, a music CD and teaching program which corresponds to Preschool/Kindergarten and School Curriculum Guidelines. Early Childhood Teachers, Community Nurses and Primary Teachers in the early years can purchase this kit. (For further information on kit contents and prices click here on Farm Safety Is Fun Program)
- The Scallywag Scarecrow Farm Safety Show is a 50-minute interactive show starring Scallywag Scarecrow and Farmer Fran puppet. It is an educational and fun way of promoting farm safety awareness in young children between 3-7 years of age that can be booked by early childhood centres and schools (For further information and cost of show go to Scallywag Scarecrow Show)
- The Farm Safety is Fun Primary Show is a 50-minute interactive show for grades 2 to 6 featuring Super Scarecrow and Farmer Vicki which may be booked by schools. (For further information and cost of the show go to Farm Safety Is Fun Primary Show)
- The Scallywag Scarecrow Home Safety Show is a 50 minute interactive show starring Scallywag Scarecrow and Simon the puppet. It is an educational and fun way of promoting home safety awareness in young children between 3-7 years of age that can be booked by early childhood centres and schools. (For further information and cost of shows fo to Scallywag Scarecrow Home Safety Show)
- Parent/ Teacher and Community information sessions and workshops. These are designed to teach parents how to assess dangers on the farm and around the home so they can help keep their children safe and to teach teachers and community workers how to foster and develop safety awareness within the children in their care.
Safety Around Farms Education provides resources and educational materials to teach young children about farm and home safety.
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