Picture book teaches kids about everyday perils

Written by Writer on Tuesday, October 28th, 2008

Picture book teaches kids about everyday perils

A picture book that alerts children to everyday dangers has recently been completed by a team led by Kogakuin University Prof. Yotaro Hatamura, an expert in the study of system failure. The book is being distributed to about 130,000 kindergartens across the nation for free.

The team visited kindergartens to gather information on situations in which children are apt to face danger. The book, titled “Abunai! Kiken” (Watch out! Dangerous!), introduces injuries such as catching body parts in doors or other devices, banging into things or falling over–all common occurrences for children.

By depicting before and after situations, the book alerts children to various dangers in an easy-to-understand fashion.

Hatamura started working on the book after an accident in Roppongi, Tokyo, in 2004, in which a boy died after getting his head trapped in a revolving door of a high-rise building.

The safety expert–who studies ways for children to avoid accidents with regard to using play equipment, escalators and other situations–drummed up support and cooperation from building construction companies, automakers and other companies.

Naoko Chikamichi, 35, who helped Hatamura create the book, said, “If the book helps children think about the potential dangers around them [then we'll have achieved something].”

The 65-page A4-sized book can be downloaded from www.kikengaku.com.
(Oct. 28, 2008)