UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — This article provides practical information that farm parents, or any caregiver, can use to decide when children can be on the farm worksite, the type of tasks that can be assigned to the children, and the safety measures to adopt.
“Raising kids on the farm is one of my greatest joys. But it has many challenges.” A Farm parent
This quote illustrates the complex reality of raising children on the farm. Involving children on the farm is a great way for children to learn about the farm and to teach them skills. At the same time, farms can be a dangerous environment. In a national study of 860 farm families, three out of four (78%) enjoyed having the children along while working on the farm but nine in ten farm families (97%) worried that their children could get hurt on the farm (Becot and Inwood, 2023). These farm families’ fear that children could get hurt connects back to national statistics. Children growing up on farms are exposed to a higher risk of injuries and fatalities. Every day, about 33 children are seriously injured in agricultural-related incidents and every three days, a child dies (National Children’s Center for Rural and Agricultural Health and Safety, 2020). In Pennsylvania, about one third of people who died in farm-related incidents within the last two years were children under the age of 19 (Judd et al., 2023, 2024).
Safety strategies based on children development stages
As children grow and develop, their physical, intellectual, and emotional abilities evolve. Research about injuries and fatalities among farm children has found that often these incidents occurred because children were doing something on the farm that did not match their abilities.
Table 1 shows development stages associated with age groups along with safety strategies and developmentally appropriate farm tasks. As you read through the table, please keep in mind that there are variations in the speed and manner in which children develop. Therefore, the safety strategies and developmentally appropriate tasks are provided as general guidelines and they should be adjusted based on your children’s abilities. Mental, emotional, social, and physical development all play equally important roles in determining children’s capability and readiness for farm tasks.
As you assign tasks, don’t forget to “practice what you preach” by setting a good example and practicing safety in your own day-to-day activities. While you might be used to your daily work and routines, don’t forget that what seems easy for you might be hard for youth.
Table 1. Child development stages, safety strategies and developmentally appropriate farm tasks
Growth stage
Developmental
characteristics
Safety strategies
Developmentally
appropriate farm tasks
Birth-4 (infant/ toddler/ preschooler)
– Rapid growth, beginning motor skills development
– Has balance problems, slow reaction time
– Is curious, exploring
– Is fascinated by movement
– Has illogical or “magic” thinking
– Is very energetic, releases tension by playing, even when exhausted
– Is self-centered but interested in group activities
– Use strong physical barriers such as locks and fences around ponds and manure pits. Lock up chemicals.
– Store ladders out of sight and reach.
– Provide a fenced-in play area away from farming activities.
– Provide maximum supervision at all times because of small children’s poor coordination, high energy, and lack of fear.
– Children should not ride as an extra rider on farm equipment
– None. Children this age should not be exposed to work hazards.
5-9 (preschooler/ early elementary school age)
– Is learning to use small and large muscles–slow, steady growth stage
– Has poor hand-eye coordination
– Tries to master more complex skills
– Operates with concrete facts, not capable of abstract ideas/thinking
– Wishes to appear competent; seeks parental approval
– Wishes to take on tasks without adult supervision
– Is discovering that parents make mistakes, are human
– Rarely follows through on a task–not yet ready for responsibility
– Set rules.
– Discuss safe behavior with children.
– Talk openly about types of injuries and consequences.
– Assign and closely supervise chores.
– Never assign intense, physical chores–they can lead to exhaustion.
– Play games (with adult supervision) that focus on farm safety issues.
– Children should not ride as an extra rider on farm equipment
– Tasks of short duration that do not require a lot of hand-eye coordination
– Projects with hand tools, not power tools
– Help with watering plants, hand weeding, hand-harvesting produce, and feeding small animals, such as pets or orphaned baby animals
– Collect eggs
– Use youth working guidelines to help you assign tasks (see below for more information).
10-13 (middle school age/ early teen)
– Is growing at a steady rate– approaching puberty; boys grow more quickly than girls
– Small muscles are developing rapidly
– Has same coordination as adults but lapses of awkwardness are common
– Has greater physical and mental skills
– Desires peer and social acceptance
– Wishes to try new skills without constant adult supervision
– Signs of independence emerging
– Potentially the most dangerous age because of constant risk taking and ease of distraction and clumsiness–never mistake a child’s size for ability to do work!
– Set clear and consistent rules; discuss consequences and rewards.
– Provide specific education on farm hazard prevention.
– Plan increases in chores and responsibilities.
– Start with low-risk tasks; give more responsibility for follow-through with less supervision.
– Hand raking, digging
– Limited power tool use (supervision); hand tools better
– Help with watering plants, hand weeding, hand-harvesting produce,
– Handling and assisting with animals
– Use youth working guidelines to help you assign tasks (see below for more information).
13-16 (adolescent/ young teenagers)
– Is growing rapidly and changing physically; can be an uneasy time
– Girls growing faster than boys
– Has moved from concrete thinking to abstract; enjoys mental activity
– Can find solutions to own problems but still need adult guidance
– Feels need to be accepted by peers
– Resists adult authority
– Feels immortal
– Judge size and age to measure maturity for tasks.
– Be consistent with rules.
– Provide education from peers with farm injuries.
– Provide all-terrain vehicle training, protective gear.
– Enroll child in safe tractor and machinery operation program (NSTMOP) (see below for more information)
– Encourage children to become involved in 4-H and FFA safety projects.
– Still needs adult supervision but ready for more adult jobs such as equipment operation and maintenance
– Gradually increase tasks as experience is gained
– Manual handling of feed and feeding animals
– Operate lawn mower (push mower, flat surface, under supervision) or garden tractor
– Can operate a tractor over 20 PTO horsepower along with tractor implements at ages 14 and 15 after the completion of safe tractor and machinery operation training program
– Use youth working guidelines to help you assign tasks (see below for more information).
16-18 (middle/ older teenage)
– Awkwardness overcome, mastery of small and large muscles basically complete.
– Knows abilities, moving further away from family and into community as independent person
– Feels immortal
– May act like child one day, adult the next
– Rebellion, risk-taking, aggressiveness typical behaviors
– Consistent treatment from adults important
– Needs independence and to develop own identity
– Has increased sense of adult responsibilities, thinking of future
May experiment with drugs or alcohol
– Provide rules regarding drugs and alcohol; open communication
– Reward for accepting adult responsibilities.
– Serve as role model–teach younger children farm safety.
– Parents may still have cause for concern with recklessness and risk-taking and may work side-by-side with young adult until absolutely ready.
– May be ready to work with tractors, self-propelled machinery, augers, elevators, and other farm equipment, but must earn this responsibility. Should be trained, educated, and supervised at regular intervals.
– Use youth working guidelines to help you assign tasks (see below for more information).
Youth working guidelines
In addition to table 1, you can use the Agricultural Youth Working Guidelines from the National Children’s Center for Rural and Agricultural Health and Safety.
With guidelines for 53 common agricultural tasks, these guidelines:
Help you determine when youth ages 7-16 can safely perform a task,
Provide information about hazards and protective strategies for each task, and
Help you find the right level of supervision needed.
Examples of tasks covered by the Agricultural Youth Working Guidelines include hand harvesting, working with large animals, operating a lawn mower, repairing fence, and cleaning calf pens/hutches. See figure 1 for an example of guidelines for cleaning calf pens/hutches.
Figure 1. Example of guidelines for cleaning calf pens/hutches
Cultivate Safety lists 53 Agricultural Youth Work guidelines. You can also find booklets focused on groups of tasks including: operating farm equipment, working in gardens, and working with animals.
A printed version of the Guidelines can be requested by contacting the National Children’s Center for Rural and Agricultural Health and Safety at 1-800-662-6900 or [email protected]
National Safe Tractor and Machinery Operation Program
The National Safe Tractor and Machinery Operation Program (NSTMOP) through Penn State Extension is a great program for your youth to develop safe tractor and machinery operation skills. It is a 24-hour program where they will learn about general agricultural safety, tractor and equipment operation, and highway transportation.
This training along with obtaining the US Department of Labor certificate are required for youth aged 14 and 15 to be legally allowed to operate tractor and machinery on a farm that is not operated by a family member. Visit our website to find out more about the program, contact us by email at [email protected], or call 814-865-4582.
Conducting Farm Safety Audits with the Children
Another way to promote safety with the children is to conduct periodic farm safety audits. The audits will allow you to identify hazards to correct while at the same time talking with the children about hazards and how to prevent them.
As you walk around the farm, think about past “close calls” or potential future situations that might cause injuries. Determine the factors that were or could be responsible for a near-miss and attempt to explain those factors to children who are mature enough to understand.
You can use a safety checklist such as the Child AgSafety Checklist that was specifically designed with children in mind. You can also use this list of common checks:
Be sure to safely store items that cause injuries, including tools, equipment, power cords, fence wire, and baler cord. Heavy objects such as tractor tires should not be propped against walls or fences because they could fall over and crush a child or adult. Always place the bottom rungs of fixed ladders out of reach of children or fit the ladders with barriers. Store portable ladders away from dangerous areas.
Don’t create new hazards when storing items. This includes haphazardly stacked lumber or poorly stacked cut logs as they can topple.
Pesticides, treated seed, fertilizer, and other toxic materials like dairy pipeline cleaner should be kept in a locked storage area.
Place appropriate warning decals on tractors, machines, grain bins, silos, wagons, and any other potentially hazardous item. Explain the significance of these warning symbols to children.
Children should be able to reach feed and water containers from outside an animal’s pen or corral.
Maintain safety zones around buildings and structures. Special fencing and barriers need to be placed around or over the structures that are extremely dangerous so that children cannot enter them. Dangerous areas include:
Silos: These are particularly dangerous because of gases and running machinery during the filling and unloading of silage and grains.
Grain bins: The grain inside can turn into “quicksand,” especially during bottom unloading.
Farm ponds and manure pits: These are potential drowning sites with gasses and low oxygen hazards. Always make sure that ponds and pits are inaccessible to children!
Barn hay-drop openings: Fractured skulls and deaths have been caused by falls through a hay hole during play.
For younger children, you can also use farm safety activity books such as this one to introduce them to dangers on the farm.
References
Bean, T. L. and Wojtowicz J. Farm Safety for Children: What Job is Right for My Child? Child Development Awareness for Farm Parents and Grandparents. AEX-991.1. Agricultural Engineering Department and Department of Preventive Medicine: The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio.
Becot, F., & Inwood, S. (2023). Childcare in Agriculture: Key for Children’s Safety and the Economic Viability of Farm and Ranch Businesses (2023 National Farm Families Childcare Survey Findings – Research brief #1, Issue).
Murphy, D. (2014). Children and Safety on the Farm. Penn State Extension.
Michael, J., & Fetzer, L. (2023). 2022 Pennsylvania Farm Fatal Injury Summary. Penn State Extension.
Michael, J., Becot, F., & Fetzer, L. (2024). 2023 Pennsylvania Farm Fatal Injury Summary. Penn State Extension.
National Children’s Center for Rural and Agricultural Health and Safety. (2020). Childhood agricultural injuries (U.S.) – 2020 Fact sheet. Retrieved 30 April.
National Children’s Center for Rural and Agricultural Health and Safety. (2020). Child/youth agricultural safety checklist.
National Children’s Center for Rural and Agricultural Health and Safety. Agricultural Youth Work Guidelines.
Authors: Florence Becot and Linda Fetzer adapted from the article “Children and Safety on the Farm” by Dennis Murphy.
–Penn State University
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