Emergency Preparedness Class for Kids

I will be teaching an Emergency Prep class at our home school co-op this semester. Here is my basic lesson plan: 

Emergency Preparedness 101 Class Description

We will learn the basics of being prepared for an emergency (wild fire, storms, accidents and more) away from home and at home. 

Discuss the three basic necessities: Food - what kind, how to store, how to prepare; Water - sources, how much and how best to store; Shelter - various types (from tent, rv and home).  Last class session will be to prepare a "Grab 'N Go" bag.  Items needed for this class:  a sturdy bag (duffel or backpack with working closure (velcro or zipper).  The bag does NOT have to be new, just sturdy and in working order.

Resources:

The West Ladies DVD - Canning
FEMA Website
Backwoods Home Magazine
http://www.ready.gov/kids
http://www.equipped.com/kidprimr.htm

Lesson 1: 

Proverbs 31:10-

Define emergency
Define preparedness

To start build an emergency kit and a family communications plan (this is who calls who, where to meet)
A disaster supplies kit is simply a collection of basic items your household may need in the event of an emergency.

Try to assemble your kit well in advance of an emergency. You may have to evacuate at a moment’s notice and take essentials with you. You will probably not have time to search for the supplies you need or shop for them.  You may need to survive on your own after an emergency.  This means having your own food, water and other supplies in sufficient quantity to last for at least 72 hours. Local officials and relief workers
will be on the scene after a disaster but they cannot reach everyone immediately. You could get help in hours or it might take days.


DO NOT RELY ON THE GOVERNMENT, LEARN TO RELY ON YOUR PARENTS AND YOURSELF.

http://www.ready.gov/document/family-supply-list

(BRING IN RED NOTEBOOK - I KEEP ALL DOCUMENTS IN ONE LARGE RED THREE RING NOTEBOOK SO I CAN GRAB AND GO)

Additionally, basic services such as electricity, gas, water, sewage treatment and telephones may be cut off for days or even a week, or longer. Your supplies kit should contain items to help you manage during these outages, or if sheltering at home have other ways on hand to get by.  Electricity is a luxury not a necessity.  You can live without it.  If your family has a generator, encourage your parents to keep it in good working
order, cleaned, maintained and stored to prevent corrosion or harm.  Fuel for the generator will also need to be stored for the generator.  Talk to your parents about how to do this safely (out of the weather, away from flame, fuel stabilizers)

FEMA website:

The National Incident Management System (NIMS) defines preparedness as "a continuous cycle of planning, organizing, training, equipping, exercising, evaluating, and taking corrective action in an effort to ensure effective coordination during incident response.  What types of emergencies should we be prepared for?  Ask student to list several they are aware of, and discuss others missed.  (natural disasters/weather, pandemic, terroist, nuclear, martial law, economic collapse, governmental issues)

- In our area we have had wild fires, train derailments, chemical spills, flooding, extreme drought/heat
- How do we handle each of these?  In most cases, listening the local authorities that call for evacuation is best, this will be different for each family, and how our parents want to handle it.  Children may be taken to a safe place, and the parents may stay to prevent home from burning by making fire breaks, clearing brush away from the house, watering things down, etc.  Check with your parents on their plan in the event of a wild fire.  In the event of chemical spills it's best to get out of the area, if you are stuck at home, it is best to turn off AC/heat, close windows, and cover with plastic and duct table to keep toxic fumes to a minumum.  While you may be worried about pets, if you can't find them, your safety comes first.  Don't go hunting for pets or livestock.  Most animals use their God given instincts to escape disasters, and will often run away and hide.

What does it means to be prepared?  Ready for anything.  The government suggests have from 3-7 days worth of food and water on hand, plus adequate shelter.  Sometimes they will ask for evacuation, other times it is better to stay home and shelter in place.  Another term for this is to "bug in", as opposed to "bug out" which means to leave.  In this class, we'll discuss the Rule of Three.  Meaning always have at least three ways of doing something.

Plan for the risks in your area.  We will be working on tailoring a plan for your family's own particular needs (disabled, city, country, etc.) Get your parents involved.

Homework:  Look at a map of your area and locate three ways to get home.  Think outside the box, sometimes roads are not the best way.  Cross country, walking or cycling may be a better/safer way then driving, but look for at least three or, as many as, you can find.

List three emergenices you want to make sure your family is prepared for.. The three I emphasize are:

1) Severe storms (tornadoes)
2) Wild fire
3) Economic collapse/governmental disarray (martial law).. The three I emphasize are:

1) Severe storms (tornadoes)
2) Wild fire
3) Economic collapse/governmental disarray (martial law)

http://www.ready.gov/kids
http://www.fema.gov/pdf/library/color.pdf

Lesson 2:  FOOD STORAGE

READ Patrice Lewis Intro on Food (www.rural-revolution.com) - her article is on the Backwoods Home website

We are going to operate on the presumption that we are "sheltering in place".  Who remembers what this term means? "General" recommendations are 3 days to 1 week worth of food, this is basic, opt for larger amounts

Main Rule of thumb is:  Store what you eat, eat what you store.  Make it balanced and nutritious, include comfort food/fun food to alleviate food fatigue and stress

Types of food I have:

store  bought canned goods
store bought grains, flours, basic staples
LDS
meat animals (chickens, coats, calf)
garden
home canned foods
dehydrated

3 ways to store food without electricity
1) dehydration
2) commercially canned
3) smoked
4) home canning
5) more?

**Try and steer away from keeping primary food sources stored in refrigerator/freezer)

3 ways to provide food in an emergency
1) garden
2) own meat animals
3) hunting (not a good long term solution, as others will be using too, and game will be depleted)
4) stock own tank with fish
5) store food (start now)

Bring and show examples of different types of food to store/prepare

1) LDS cans
2) home canned (canning supplies)
3) dehydrated (bring dehydrator)
4) garden seeds (can or packages)

http://www.backwoodshome.com/articles2/lewis133.html
Baker Creek Seed catalog
http://www.backwoodshome.com/articles/clay55.html (has list of year supply of food for a family of 3)

Provide list of basics to have on hand (Backwoods Home prep book)

Example:
bread flour
corn meal
baking soda
cream of tartar
salt
sugars (white, brown, honey, etc.)
oils/shortening/lard
rice
beans
oats, etc.,

Homework: 
1) Discuss with parents on starting to prepare and store food and supplies for emergencies
2) Take an inventory of your home food pantry or freezer and make a list of TEN basic items needed for your pantry.
3) Organize at least one cabinet in your home pantry or freezer (get permission first).  Have a parent initial your basic food list and bring to class.
4) Read Patrice Lewis article online (at home or library) - I'll send link to parents, but please write it down as well.  If you can't get to a computer, please let me know.

Continue Watch Canning DVD (if time)

Lesson 3: Bring water filter, water jug, washer, solar shower)

Water (sources, amounts, purification, bathing, toilet, laundry - bring rapid washer)

Bring stuff to make a bucket toilet

procure and start filling 2 quart size soda bottles with water, rotate out every 6 months to keep fresh

water filter, Berkey Filter, bleach

Homework:  Draw a diagram of your home and outbuildings and plan a water catchment system for an emergency water source
           Find, locate and list three alternate water sources in your area, OTHER than water company delivery, share with class next week
           With parent's permission store 1 quart of water for each person in your family (you can use old soda or water bottles, clean bottles really well, and put 5 drops of bleach in each 2 quart container before storage


 *********************************************************************************************
         
Lesson 4:  Shelter  (inclues heat, light, sanitation, entertainment and security)
nclude games, generator, inverters, batteries, lighting and more)

3 different types of shelter
1) home
2) RV/Pop Up
3) Tent
4) Tarp
5)

3 ways to heat home - How do you heat your home? What would you do if the power was out? Cold vs. Heat
1) wood stove
2) fireplace (not efficient)
3) kerosene heater
4) propane heater
5) ??

3 ways to light home
1) candles
2) oil lamp
3) LED lamps (batteries/solar chargers)
4) Solar panels (see Harbor Freight, Ace or Lowe's for inexpensive solar lights)
5) generator (don't forget storage of fuel)

3 ways to provide sanitation:
1) bathng (tubs, outdoor shower, pond, solar shower)
2) toilet (own septic system, out house, camp toilet, compost toilet)
3) dish washing (kitchen sink, dish pans, paper plates, etc.,)

3 ways to provide security
1) be aware, guard duty
2) weapons (guns, knives, etc.)
3) lock doors/windows, clear brush from windows, fencing, dogs

Bring tarp, bungees, tent?
Inverter, lamp, solar light
Battery Charger
Mr. Buddy Heater
Games/Cards/Books

Homework:  Evaluate each area above and find one area of improvement and report on it

1) Heat or Cooling
2) Light
3) Sanitation (build outdoor shower?)


Lesson 5:  Safety and Protection (OPSEC, weapons, awareness), Important Documents

Talk to your parents about their safety precautions.  There may be some things they don't want discussed about your personal possessions outside of your home.  We call this OPSEC or Operational Security.  Gather important documents and keep centrally located. 


Homework:  Talk to parents FIRST and get their okay
1) Make copy of your brith certificate
2) Make copy of your health insurance card and doctor's name, number, address
3) Make copy of your Emergency contact information


Lesson 6:  Gardening

Watch West Ladies DVD on Gardening
Talk about what grows best in our area
Review Growing Zone (last freeze, first freeze, length of season)

Homework: 

1)Review the outlay of your property, discuss with parents the best location for a possible garden (this can be a real location
or just a plan)

2) Make a list of 10 types of vegetables, herbs, etc., that your family normally eats and that you would like to grow

3) Gather as many packets of seeds that you can find, inexpensively.  Don't worry about non-gmo, or hybrid at this time, the
importance is to start your own "seed bank".  Starting is the KEY.



Lesson 7: Preparing in your Community, Discuss using Rubber Maid Tote and larger preps for vehicle, Discuss items for Grab 'N Go Bag


What avenues are in our community for emergencies?
Where are our local shelters? Do we have any?
Do we have a food pantry in our town/city?
What can your family do to help?

Homework:

1) Gather items from list of needed items for Grab N Go bag, bring to next class.  DON'T FORGET WE WILL BE COMPILING OUR BAGS, and
making sure we have all needed items.



Lesson 8:  Compile items for Grab 'N Go Bag and complete packing bag

2 bottles of water
3 granola bars
3 small cans of spaghetti o's, ravioli, etc.
3 packs of dried fruit
3 candy bars
3 bags of chips
fork
flashlight
whistle
reading book
Bible
pad/pen
cards
3 pairs of sock
1 pair of underwear
2 clean shirts
travel size bar of soap, shampoo, kleenex, toothbrush, toothpaste

**Meal/snack made with food storage items for final class


A Few Survival/Preparedness books for Kids

My Side of the Mountain
Johnny Tremain
The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder
U.S. Army First Aid Manual