Educate your children at a young age about the perils of fire and how to keep prevent a fire to happen. Most times, fires happen by accident. Teach your kids to learn about fire safety.

By learning about fire hazards, your children can reduce the risk of fire in your home. They must understand the dangers of a fire and what to do if fire breaks out. It can make a huge lifesaving difference.

The most effective way to educate your children about fire is to model safe behavior. When children see you practicing fire prevention and taking care of fire hazards, they will do as you do.

Here are important fire safety concepts to teach children:

' Be fire smart: ask them to stay away from anything that can start a fire such as lighters, matches, candles. This includes the kitchen stove, radiators, irons, and other hot appliances. Don't play with these, teach them that these are tools, not toys.

' Don't be scared-be prepared: Create and practice a family home escape plan. Ask them to help draw up a floor plan of your home showing two ways out of each room (usually a door or a window). Visit each room and have them point to the two safest way out, then have fire drills where everyone has to get outside from different places in the house and never to go back inside for anything – toys, clothes, or pets.

' See smoke, crawl low: The air near the floor is cooler and fresher. Teach them to crawl low under smoke by holding towels or sheets about 3 feet above the floor for them to make their way under. Tell them to test a closed door before opening it. If the door is warm, the fire could be on the other side, so they should leave the door-closed and use the second way out of the room.

' Stay in control: stop, drop and roll – children should know not to run if their clothes catch fire. They should stop, drop to the ground, cover their face with hands, and roll over and over until the flames are out. Have them practice this.

' Get out first, then look for help: Teach them to report a fire only from a place outside the house. Inform the emergency number 08001900911 and ask them to memorize it. Play the role of an emergency dispatcher and have your children practice calling. Ask for their name, address, what the emergency is, and other related details. You can also teach them to go to the nearest security post to get help.