Dad’s dramatic way of teaching toddler to stay away from power outlet is visual learning at its finest

Toddlers are natural explorers. As soon as they start crawling, everything around them turns into a playground and an experiment. With no sense of danger, they tend to reach for anything that looks interesting, especially things they definitely shouldn’t touch. While most parents rely on baby-proofing and repeated “no’s”, one dad on TikTok has taken an interesting and hilarious approach–pretending to get electrocuted.

In a video posted on Sofia De La Garza's TikTok account, @sofidj44, her husband gets down on all fours and crawls toward an electrical outlet, pretending to touch it. Suddenly, he launches into an over-the-top performance, shaking and convulsing as if he’s been electrocuted. Their toddler watches with wide eyes and quickly starts crying, clearly startled by the fake electrocution.

The video has taken TikTok by storm, gathering over 20 million views and more than 17,000 comments. Viewers have loved the dad’s commitment and creativity, and lauded him for turning it into one of the funniest and most clever parenting hacks online. The most hilarious part about the video is when the camera pans from the toddler crying to the dad, falling on the ground, pretending he is dead. 

The comments section is filled with hilarious reactions. One user @Don’t Liewrote, “And I just have this strange recurring dream that my dad is being electrocuted.” Another user, @castillo507 joked, “When did you lose your dad? I was 8 months, bro, we have it on video.” The dramatic cut back to the dad lying still on the floor made many viewers laugh out loud, with one saying, “The cut back to him just lying on the floor motionless took me out.” Another user, @Robbin added, “Get that man to Hollywood, going to get a Grammy!" Similarly, another user, @Isaiah Lindley, very thoughtfully wrote, "Jokes aside, this is honestly pretty awesome parenting. Outlet covers merely prevent your kid from doing what they shouldn't do. This helps them understand why they shouldn't do it."

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission reported that more than 24,000 children over a ten-year period were admitted to the emergency room due to incidents with electrical receptacles. This is approximately seven children every day, with 89% of them being under the age of six. There is a step-by-step guide by MomLovesBest on how this hazard can be prevented. It says, "To babyproof your home and keep toddlers safe from electrical hazards, start by covering all electrical outlets using plastic outlet covers, outlet boxes, or self-closing outlet covers that automatically shut when not in use. Keep electrical cords out of reach by using cord shorteners, covers, straps, or wraps to prevent curious little hands from pulling or chewing on them. Power strips should also be secured with dedicated covers or by using individual outlet protectors. In addition to these physical safety measures, it’s important to begin teaching children about electrical safety early on—explain the dangers in simple terms and set clear rules around touching outlets, cords, or appliances to help prevent accidents and injuries."

You can follow @sofidj44 on TikTok for more parentip tips and videos.