Skip to main content
FamilyEducation
FamilyEducation
Family Education

FE-Menu

  • Pregnancy
    • <blank>
      • Pregnancy Tracker
      • Trying to Conceive
      • Signs & Symptoms
      • Pregnancy Health
    • <blank>
      • Baby Names
      • High Risk Pregnancies
      • Preparing for Baby
    • <blank>
      • Concerns & Complications
      • Labor & Delivery
      • Postpartum
  • Baby Names
    • <blank>
      • Browse All Baby Names (A-Z)
      • Top Names for Boys
      • Top Names for Girls
      • Baby Name Generator
    • <blank>
      • Baby Name Lists & Ideas
      • First Names By Origin
      • Browse All Last Names (A-Z)
      • Last Names by Origin
  • Babies
    • <blank>
      • Caring For Your Baby
      • Baby's Health
      • Feeding Your Baby
    • <blank>
      • Your Baby and Sleep
      • Baby's Growth & Development
      • Baby Hygiene
    • <blank>
      • Baby Safety
      • Baby Products
    • <blank>
  • Toddlers
    • <blank>
      • Toddler Growth and Development
    • <blank>
      • Toddler Behavior and Discipline
    • <blank>
      • Your Toddler and Sleep
  • Kids
    • <blank>
      • Health
      • Childhood Development
      • Fitness & Nutrition
      • Childhood Safety
    • <blank>
      • Communicating with Your Kids
      • Childhood Behavior and Discipline
      • Fostering Responsibility
      • Instilling Values & Manners
    • <blank>
      • Childcare
      • Neurodiversity in Kids
      • Adopting Children
  • Teens
    • <blank>
      • Teen Health
      • Teen Puberty & Sex
    • <blank>
      • Behavior & Discipline
      • Teen Social Development
    • <blank>
      • Values & Responsibilities
  • Activities
    • <blank>
      • Printables
      • Indoor Activities
      • Learning Activities
      • Arts and Crafts
      • Performing Arts
      • Food Activities
      • Outdoor Activities
    • <blank>
      • Books
      • TV
      • Movies
      • Online
      • Quizzes
      • Games
      • Celebrities
    • <blank>
      • Parties
      • Travel
      • Toys
      • Holidays
      • Gifts
  • Learning
    • <blank>
      • By Grade
      • By Subject
      • College
      • Preschool
    • <blank>
      • Back to School
      • Study Skills
      • Learning Styles
    • <blank>
      • Homeschooling
      • Parental Involvement
      • Your Child's School
  • Family Life
    • <blank>
      • Mom Life
      • Dad Life
      • Family Relationships
      • Having a Healthy Marriage
      • Divorce
    • <blank>
      • Health & Fitness
      • COVID Resources
      • Managing Your Home
      • Moving Your Family
      • Pets
    • <blank>
      • Family Finances
      • Work
      • Families and Food
  • NewslettersNewsletters
    Newsletters

Breadcrumb

  1. Home
  2. Babies
  3. Baby Safety
  4. How To Keep Your Crawling Baby Safe

How to Keep Your Crawling Baby Safe

Read tips on what you should do to keep your crawling baby safe around the home.
  • facebook share icon
  • pin
  • twitter share icon
  • email share icon
  • Print page icon

How to Keep Your Crawling Baby Safe

Babyproofing

Although pressure gates work fine at the bottom of a flight of stairs, they provide inadequate protection at the top of the stairs. If your baby falls into a pressure gate, uses it to pull himself up to his knees or feet, or even just pushes hard, he may pop it right out of place and crash down the stairs with it. So be sure to install a safety gate that bolts into the wall or newel post at the top of the stairs.

Once your baby starts crawling, you have to work 10 times harder to keep him safe. Now that he's on the move, your baby needs constant supervision. Otherwise, you'll find him getting into everything that's less than two or three feet off the floor.

Shortly after he begins crawling, he may start to pull himself to standing, or at least to kneeling. So he'll empty out your rack of CDs, cassette tapes, or videos, and somehow remove each one from its case. He'll dump wastepaper baskets. He'll pull things off of tables and other surfaces. To prevent mishaps, keep an eye on your baby at all times and never let down your guard.

In addition to providing constant supervision, you should take the following precautions:

  • Keep all electric cords out of reach or secured to the floor. If your baby can grab a cord, he's sure to pull a lamp or clock or iron down on his head.
  • Shield all electric outlets with safety caps. If your baby manages to stick a finger or a plaything into an outlet, he may get a nasty shock.
  • Avoid leaving anything on the floor unless it's safe for your baby. Your baby will soon be able to cover lots of ground very quickly, so rid your floor of any choking hazards, toxins, and anything else that might do your baby harm.
  • Install safety gates that block off stairs at both the bottom and the top. Crawling on stairs, especially going upstairs by himself, will be lots of fun for your baby. You may even want to encourage your baby's skill at climbing by getting a playroom set of sturdy wooden steps or a toddler slide that has three or four steps. However, you need to make sure that your baby doesn't go upstairs on her own whenever he pleases. When your baby crawls upstairs, stay right behind him. When he wants to come down again, try to teach him how to crawl down safely by going backwards. Again, stay right behind your baby at all times. And use those safety gates!

What's hot

  • Introducing Cereal to Infants BabiesWhen Can Babies Eat Cereal? (…
  • two babies playing in the playroom Babies12 Simple Developmental…
  • Toddler Takes Sips of Wine and Beer BabiesIs It Okay for Toddlers to…
  • Printable Month-by-Month Developmental Milestone Chart BabiesPrintable Month-by-Month…
NewslettersNewsletters
Your partner in parenting from baby name inspiration to college planning.
Family Education
FamilyEducation does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Your use of the site indicates your agreement to be bound by our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Information on our advertising guidelines can be found here.

FE Footer

  • Newsletter Center
  • About Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Editorial Policy
  • Editorial Team
  • Expert Panel
  • Cookie Policy
  • Site Map
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Terms of Use
  • Do Not Sell My Info (for CA Residents)
sandbox learning logo
Family Education is part of the Sandbox Learning family of educational reference sites for parents, teachers, and students. 

factmonster logoinfoplease logoTeacherVision logo

sandbbox logo
©2022 Sandbox Networks Inc. All rights reserved. Sandbox Learning is part of Sandbox & Co., a digital learning company.