It’s that time of the year again – happy back-to-school season!
While this is an exciting time for parents, it can also be a little overwhelming.
Between picking up school supplies, preparing lunches, and meeting new teachers, it’s easy to forget about getting your home “after-school” ready.
But here’s the good news: we’ve rounded up plenty of ways that you can protect, monitor, and keep track of your kids even when you can’t physically be home!
Ready to learn how? Here are 5 after-school tips for the back-to-school season:
#1: Keep Tabs on Who’s Coming and Going
When it comes to after school safety, one of the biggest worries parents have is simply making sure their kids get home all right.
If your kids are old enough and comfortable being home alone, you'll want to take steps to ensure they're safe and sound.
Options like video surveillance can also be helpful, but it requires parents to monitor the footage almost constantly – and for older teens, it can also be intrusive and hamper their ability to develop independence.
Looking for a better solution? Then you should consider putting your Notion sensors to work by placing one on each exit door and window in your home.
Notion’s wireless sensors will send you an alert when doors and windows have been opened, so it’s a great way to keep a tab on when your kids get home from school or even when someone opens the garage door.
This can provide peace of mind if you’re wondering how to keep your teenager from sneaking out or inviting unwanted guests home with them!
#2: Prevent Underage Drinking
At one time or another, most teens are faced with an invitation to consume alcohol with their friends. In fact, more than 70% of teens have consumed at least one alcoholic beverage by the time they reach age 18.
One way to prevent teens from drinking is to cut off easy access to alcohol, such as locking your liquor cabinet.
If you’re looking for that extra bit of peace of mind, you can also install a Notion wireless sensor on your liquor cabinet door – this allows you to monitor via Wi-Fi if your cabinet has been opened.
Just like all of our sensors, Notion will send you a notification when the cabinet door has been opened, which can give you a head start in stopping any hazardous activities.
#3: Safely Store Your Firearms
Did you know that 1 out of every 3 homes with children in the U.S. has a firearm?
For families that choose to keep firearms in their homes, it’s incredibly important to store them in a safe and secure location.
In fact, the best way that parents can reduce firearm-related injuries in children and teens is by following proper gun storage rules!
Project ChildSafe recommends that parents keep unloaded firearms stored in a locked cabinet, gun vault, safe, or storage case with ammunition locked separately. This is called “triple safe” storage. You should also make sure children and teens can't access the keys or combinations to gun vaults or safes.
You can also place a Notion sensor on the door of your locked gun safe. That way, if for any reason your child opens the door, you’ll be notified immediately.
#4: Get Alerts When Alarms Sound
While kids should be encouraged to be creative in the kitchen, dangerous situations can arise when stoves and toasters are left on for too long.
Because of this, parents should take extra precautions to reduce the risk of fires in the home, including installing fire safety equipment and preparing safety and evacuation plans to ensure children escape safely.
That last part is key. One of the most important steps you can take to protect your kids against fire is to install smoke alarms and keep them in good working order.
The same is true for carbon monoxide (CO) alarms. While most homes these days already have a CO detector installed, it’s important to double (and maybe even triple!) check that it’s working. The National Safety Council recommends changing out your CO detector batteries when you change your clocks every spring and fall.
If you’re looking for that extra bit of peace of mind, you should also consider placing a Notion sensor by your smoke and CO alarms so you can know when they’re going off even while you’re away.
As soon as our wireless sensors detect your smoke alarm or going off, you’ll get an alert sent to your phone so you can take action.
#5: Prevent Water Damage Before it Happens
"If kids aren't doing the dishes, it means someone else is doing that for them," Julie Lythcott-Haims, author of 'How to Raise an Adult' said during a recent TED Talk.
We’re inclined to agree!
While household chores like dishwashing or laundry are the bane of every kid’s existence, they can be great for developing responsibility and independence -- well, as long as everything goes according to plan!
Like any appliance that uses water, a malfunctioning or improperly-used washing machine can cause indoor flooding. And this can cause extreme damage in homes, especially when it isn’t caught in time.
From sinks to washing machines, hundreds of gallons of water run through your home, and every day 14,000 people in the US experience a water damage emergency.
To keep your mind at ease, you should consider installing Notion smart water leak sensors in areas where accidents are likely to occur -- like behind toilets, sinks, bathtubs, water heaters, AC units, and other appliances.
These wireless water leak detectors will immediately notify you in the event of a water leak so you can take action before major damage occurs!
These are just a few ways that parents can keep their peace of mind during the school season. Remember, a little precaution can go a long way!
Notion lets you know what’s going on at home no matter where you are.
