From time to time you read about a young child saving someone’s life by dialing 911 and being able to accurately give the dispatcher on the other end of the line accurate information.

Teresa Goodlad, who owns Goodlad Insurance in Lehigh, believes every young child in the first grade should be able to use the phone to call in an emergency. With that in mind, she and the Lehigh Acres Fire Dept. recently visited one of the local schools and gave a presentation and worked with each first grader on the how to dial 911 and give accurate information.

Firefighters spoke to them outside about how to get out of a house if there is a fire and then they were shown some of the equipment on a fire truck.

Goodlad has a program that includes a phone with a recorded voice on it that simulates the emergency dispatcher who asks the child certain questions.

“What is your emergency,” is the way the 911 dispatcher answers the call. Then the child is asked his or her name and where their home is and the address.

“It is these questions that we teach the children to know and how to speak so that if there is an emergency they should be prepared to call 911, they should know how to do it and hopefully with that knowledge, may save someone’s life,” Goodlad said.

In a recent classroom setting, first graders sat in the floor while Goodlad told them about 911 and how it relates to getting help when something happens at their home or anywhere else where an emergency has occurred.

Each child from the first grade at Lehigh Elementary School was given several minutes to participate in the training and Goodlad worked with each student in an effort to get them acquainted with dialing 911 and providing information. One of the things noticed during this practice was that a lot of the children could not tell where they lived without looking at their address on the backpacks.

“Every child should be able to give an address,” Goodlad said. “It’s critically important so if they call 911, that information is accurate. A child may have to call 911 because a parent or grandparent has fallen or has had a stroke or heart attack and can’t get to the phone,” she said. “It could be to report a fire.”

The Lehigh Acres Fire Dept. was on hand during the day, too, with a fire truck and after the training, each first grader of the school was allowed to get on the truck while two firefighters on the scene described the equipment.

Goodlad said teaching children to call 911 should start as soon as they can play with a phone.

Some points for parents to consider including teaching their children is to call from the house phone and not a cell phone. Once the call from a house phone is made, the child really doesn’t need to say anything else to get help. A child should be told not to hang up told to do so. In most cases, 911 dispatchers will keep children on the line until responders have arrived. This assures the children that someone is there for them.

Many children have a tendency to mumble when they are nervous. Parents should stress the importance of being heard and being understood. The recording equipment and computers make it difficult to hear at some 911 centers.

And Goodlad said children should learn how to pronounce their last name clearly to the 911 dispatcher. Children should be taught to listen to the questions carefully and ask the call-taker to repeat if necessary.

Children should be taught the absolute importance of not to make things up. Youngsters may see the call-taker’s question as a sort of quiz, and feel they let someone down if they don’t know the answer. That sometimes can lead to creative answers. If they don’t know the answer, it is much better for them to just say they’re not sure and move on the next question.

Even though Goodlad was going through the procedures in the classroom, she said parents can practice on an unplugged phone at home. Parents can ask them questions about the “pretend incident” and doing this kind of role-playing repeatedly helps children if they should have to call 911 in an emergency.

Today, many homes do not have land lines, so children should know how to use a cell phone if they make an emergency call and be aware of where they are.

Calling 911 should only be when there is a real emergency. Parents should teach their children not do it as a joke. In most places, call the 911 emergency number for any other reason than an emergency can be ground for an arrest.

When the youngsters went outside to see a fire truck, they are reminded about how to get out of a house if it is on fire. They are also told to get out through a window and stay low if possible.

“I think the children learned from this,” Goodlad say later. “If it means we can save lives, then teaching these kids how to use 911 is very important and the training should continue at home.

“It is especially important for a first grader to know his or her address and the first names of his or her parents, too,” she said.

“Children who can make such emergency calls can save the lives of their parents, relatives and friends. It’s that important and parents should continue to follow up at home,” she said.