Julius Lewis of Roanoke, Va., By Catherine O'Neill is a freelance children's writer

Julius and Janette were playing out in the back yard when the little girl inhaled a piece of Easter candy. It got stuck in the airway leading from her mouth to her lungs. Janette couldn't breathe. Luckily, Julius knew what to do. He was able to save Janette's life because he knew first aid for choking-a series of abdominal thrusts, also called the Heimlich maneuver, that would expell the candy from her airway. Julius had just learned the lifesaving technique in a Red Cross class he took at Highland Park Elementary School, where a volunteer from the Roanoke Valley chapter of the Red Cross conducts a Basic Aid Training course.

"I put my arms around the bottom of her rib cage, put my fists above her bellybutton and pulled up. The candy just popped out," Julius recalls. Janette's mother was thrilled that Julius acted calmly and quickly to save her little girl. Mrs. Hawks did not know how to help a child who was choking.

According to the American Red Cross, the abdominal thrust is the only way to help someone choking on a piece of food or a small object. Another important first aid technique, used when someone's heart stops beating, is called CPR.

That stands for "cardiopulmonary resuscitation." "Cardio" refers to the heart, and "pulmonary" refers to the lungs. "Resuscitate" means to bring back to life. So CPR is a technique for bringing the heart and lungs back to life after an emergency has caused them to stop.. It is very rare for children to have problems requiring CPR. Kids only need CPR when their heart stops beating, maybe after they get into trouble in a swimming pool or pond and nearly drown. But when these emergencies happen, having someone around who knows how to perform first aid for breathing problems can mean the difference between life and death. The American Red Cross thinks that all parents, grandparents and child care givers should know how to perform these lifesaving skills. CPR techniques for babies and children are different from those used on adults.
It's especially important for adults to know how to respond to breathing emergencies involving babies. According to a study released recently by the Injury Prevention Center at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, choking and suffocation injuries are the leading cause of accidental death in infants less than 1 year old.

If you have younger brothers and sisters, or if you are a babysitter, you probably know that it's important to keep small pieces of food and objects that they might choke on away from them. If you spend any time at all around little kids, you notice that they put things in their mouths all the time. Hot dogs, round candies, popcorn, nuts and grapes can be dangerous to little children-especially babies under age 2. Small round toys such as balls or beads that babies might put in their mouths and swallow by accident are also hazards.
The Johns Hopkins Injury Prevention Center provides the following tips to help prevent injuries that might cause a child to stop breathing.

- Keep small, round foods from young children.

- Keep toys designed for older children away from toddlers.

- Check furniture and playground equipment to make sure it is free from cords or bars that might strangle a small child. Even common household items, such as the cords to window blinds, can be dangerous.

- If your family or someone in your neighborhood disposes of an old refrigerator or freezer, make sure the door is removed. That way, kids won't climb into it and accidentally shut the door on themselves.

- Put childproof fences around swimming pools.

Lynda Carter, the actress who played Wonder Woman on television, is acting as spokesperson for the American Red Cross campaign to educate people about childhood breathing emergencies and CPR. She has an 18-month-old son, so she took a course in infant and child CPR to learn how to keep him safe. "We want everyone who has anything to do with children-parents, grandparents, babysitters-to understand the need to know rescue breathing for infants and children," she says.

Urge the grownups in your house to learn these skills. The American Red Cross offers courses in them all over the country. They also offer safety and first aid courses for kids. Contact your local Red Cross chapter or ask your health teacher or school nurse about getting a class for your school this fall.Tips for Parents

Since 1974, the American Red Cross has trained about 25 million people in CPR. This year, the organization has introduced a new seven-hour infant and child CPR course that provides the latest emergency care information. It focuses on prevention of injuries and the special techniques used to treat the breathing and cardiac emergencies of children. The new course emphasizes the skills they are most likely to use in an emergency. "Our older courses taught people more skills than they were likely to need, causing them to forget what they had learned and to be reluctant to act in a crisis," says Robert Burnside, director of health services for the Red Cross. "This new course gives people the confidence to step forward when help is needed." For information, contact your local Red Cross chapter.