Whether your child can be found riding a bike, skateboarding, motorcycle riding, or snowboarding the best way to keep them safe is to encourage them to wear a helmet. Sometimes (or more like often) getting them to actually wear a helmet isn't as easy as buying one for them. One of the tricks that we used when our children were young was to get them involved in buying the helmet ensuring that it was one that they would like to wear. We also let them decorate their helmet with stickers. In addition, we wore and still wear helmets as well. Don't underestimate the power of you modeling this behavior. If they start wearing a helmet when they are younger, they are more likely to wear it when they are older. They will have developed a habit.
If your children are older and they have not been wearing a helmet, start encouraging them today to wear one. Talk to them about how many of their heroes wear helmets. Professional skateboarders, bikers and motorcycle riders would not be caught dead without their helmet. If they don't buy into helmets after this discussion, you may need to take a more direct approach. Show them some pictures of accidents involving people who were not wearing their helmet. If this doesn't provide the desired effect, you may need to take their equipment away from them for a time to let them know how important wearing a helmet is. It may be the difference between life or death. It may be the difference between walking away from an accident with a few bumps and bruises or experiencing brain damage.
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