Bonfire Night often holds a lot of anxiety for many of us educators. It’s no secret that lots of accidents and injuries have occurred over the years during events. This always makes us feel that little bit anxious. This is especially true when it’s about individuals who are scared of loud noises, surprises and crowds. Sometimes, this can trigger a fight or flight response from our children. Thos is why I’m writing this blog post. I hope that this post will help individuals to stay safe on Bonfire Night. But also on any other night where there are loud fireworks going off!
Bonfire Night is hard for us to help our children for a number of reasons such as;
Unpredictable.
It’s not like it used to be, where fireworks only went off on the 5th of November. Fireworks are on sale as early as the start of October now. This means you can hear fireworks most nights from them up until November. This is a nightmare when you’re trying to plan and help make your children comfortable.
They’re sold to the public.
This is where it gets even harder. We have no control over who is buying these fireworks. When they are sold to the public with no limits, that’s a lot of fireworks potentially going off! Not to mention, how dangerous they are. You see many accidents from fireworks in the news now.
Noise.
Have you heard how loud some of these fireworks are these days?! They’re enough to make anyone get scared and want to hide. Never mind our children who are already having to deal with their sensory needs as well!
Danger.
One of the hardest parts of autism, can be the obsessions. I once met a family who were very concerned because their child had an obsession with fire. He didn’t understand how dangerous it was! They had to be so careful during firework season. They were scared to let him out because he would run to fireworks and try to hold them! I can’t imagine how hard an obsession this was for them to deal with, wanting to keep their child safe!
So, what can we do to keep our children safe?
- Social stories. They are visual resources to help us understand what is going to happen on Bonfire Night. It also shows the readers how they can stay safe and how they can make themselves feel more comfortable. You can check out the one that we use here.
- Noise. We all know how loud those fireworks can be – and that’s even when you’re already inside! Ear defenders can be a great way to help block out some of that noise. But some fireworks are known to be even too loud to be blocked out by these, especially when outside! But it does lessen the noise and shock. Have a look at different ones to find the best value for money and effectiveness.
- Comfort and Safety. Have you seen the posts going around social media this year about dogs and fireworks? Most dogs are terrified of fireworks. People have been wrapping their dogs up in blankets to help them feel safe and secure. This also works great for our children too! Ours loves to be wrapped up in blankets – usually the weighted one. Then we make a den out of chairs and bedsheets. He can crawl write in there and get cosy. He then plays his iPad and has his ear defenders on. This set up helps him feel more secure and safe.
- Look for suitable events. Your child may like going to firework events – but some can be too busy, or just too loud. Have a look locally, or get in touch with your local autism group. Many places now provide suitable events for individuals with additional needs. They adapt many parts of the event, like silent fireworks.
- Silent fireworks. If your child wants to do something, but in the safety of their own home, you can now get silent fireworks! You can make snacks together like firework sausages or bonfire cupcakes. Then finish it off with fireworks. To avoid any possible loud noises, you could do this a before or after Bonfire Night.
- Visual Calendar. We love using visual calendars to help prepare our children. You can mark ona calendar when fireworks may go of to give a warning. The only issue here is, as mentioned earlier on this post, the unpredictability. People now set off fireworks on so many different days, that this can be hard to put together.
- Virtual Bonfire Night. Did you know there are now lots of different ways you can have a virtual bonfire night at home? One of our favourites is to have toasted marshmallows, hot chocolate and wrap up in a blanket. Then we watch the fireworks (turned down) on the TV. We usually play youtube videos through the apple tv onto our tv screen and this works well. It’s great for building our children’s tolerance up of fireworks. It gets them used to the noises/lights too.
- TV and Music. This year there have been some radio stations providing classical music. This to help people relax when there are loud fireworks going off outside. We also find watching our favourite cartoons – a little louder than usual! – helps to distract away from most bangs.
How do your children find bonfire night? Is it fun or do they find it stressful?
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