October 7th-13th is Fire Safety week! Join the Lesson Planning Mommy for books, songs, activities and a whole lot of fun while we learn how to be safe!
What We’re Reading…
Stop, Drop, and Roll
by Margery Cuyler
Fire! Fire!
by Gail Gibbons
Arthur’s Fire Drill
by Marc Brown
Songs:
I’m Fire Safety Sam (Sung to: “Popeye the Sailor Man!”) I’m Fire Safety Sam (ruff, ruff) I’m Fire Safety Sam (ruff, ruff) Please test smoke detectors‘Cause they’re home protectors. I’m Fire Safety Sam. (ruff, ruff) **Substitute line 3 and 4 with the following words for new verses… It’s important to say… With matches, don’t play. If there’s smoke you should know, You’d better crawl low. Have a fire escape plan. Every family can. If there’s a fire, get out. Use your escape route. Go to a neighbor’s when alone, Then call 9-1-1 on the phone. Wheels on the Fire Engine Instead of wheels…. We use the siren, ladder, seat belts, and so on and so on.
Just use your imagination with everything on the truck! Firefighters (Sung to: “Pop Goes The Weasel”) Down the street the engine goes
The Firemen fight the fire
Up the ladder with their hose
Out goes the fire. Firefighter Song (Sung To: I’m a Little Teapot) I’m a little firefighter on the go. Here is my helmet Here is my Hose. When I see a fire, Hear me shout: ”Turn on the water And put the fire out!” SHHHHHHHHHHHHH! Down at the Firehouse (Sung to: “Down by the Station”) Down at the firehouse Early in the morning, You can see our clothes Hanging in a row. Where there is a fire, We can dress real fast. Boots, jackets, hats, gloves Off we go!
Safety Tips:
- Make sure everyone in your family knows and practices escape routes from every room in your home.
- Remember to escape first, know how to call 9-1-1, and when to call for help.
- Never open doors that are hot to the touch.
- Teach your family to STOP, DROP to the ground, and ROLL if their clothes catch fire.
- Choose a meeting place outside. Try to make it a location away from your home, and out of the way of the firefighters who have come to help.
- Teach your family to never go back into a burning building, but to go to a neighbor’s to call 9-1-1.
- Test smoke alarms at least once a month and replace conventional batteries once a year or when the alarm “chirps” to tell you the battery is low. Replace any smoke alarm that is more than 10 years old.
- Install smoke alarms on every level of your home, inside bedrooms and outside sleeping areas. Interconnect smoke alarms throughout the home. When one sounds, they all sound.
- Keep matches and lighters up high, out of the reach of children, preferably in a cabinet with a child lock.
- Replace cords that are cracked, damaged, have broken plugs, or have loose connections.
- Keep candles at least one foot from anything that can burn. Blow out candles when you leave the room or go to sleep.
Videos:
Sesame Street and the FDNY: Fire at Hooper’s Store
Timon and Pumbaa’s Wild About Safety: Fire Safety
Arthur – D.W. All Fired Up
Activities:
.:Make an Emergency Fire Pail:.
Here’s a great Fire Safety Awareness project for kids that will help the whole family be prepared for small fires.
What you need:
- a one-pound box of baking soda
- a one-pound coffee can
- construction paper
- markers
Directions:
- Decorate the construction paper and print “Fire Pail” on it.
- Tape the decorated paper around the coffee can.
- Empty the baking soda into the can.
- Put the lid on the can.
Store the Emergency Fire Pail in a place that you can easily reach it if there is a small kitchen fire!
.:Create an Evacuation Plan and a Family Meeting Place:.
Once we read a few books about fire safety we talked about our own plan if there was a fire in our house. We decided it was a good idea to draw an evacuation plan for our home and made a meeting spot. Since everyone’s house is different, you’ll need to draw up your own plan. Make it simple — too many rules will complicate it for little guys. The hubs and I showed them how to check their door for heat before opening it, then discussed how smoke rises. When evacuating your home, they should cover their mouths with a damp rag and crawl out if necessary.
http://www.madefor1stgrade.com/2011/09/fire-safety-fun.html
.:Stop-Drop-Roll:.
One of the most well known fire safety actions is the “Stop-Drop-Roll”. We practiced this several times, rolling around to put out our pretend flames.
.:Fire Drill:.
Once we went over our evacuation plan a few times, I decided to test my boys. I set off the fire alarm in the house and they were instructed on how to get out of the house and to their meeting spot safely. We practiced a few times that day with them in different areas of the house. “Lets pretend we are sleeping…, Lets pretend we are playing in the family room while mommy is cooking dinner…” Very tricky with a 1-year-old! We’ll do these randomly from here on out so the kids can practice.
While I was at a fire safety day in Freeland over the summer, a fireman told me to do a fire drill in the middle of the night. I first thought he was crazy and there was no way I was going to wake my kids in the middle of the night. Then I really started to think about what he said. He said that many kids are in such a deep sleep, during the night – that THEY DO NOT WAKE UP to the sound of the smoke detector. I was very hesitant, but I did it. Neither of my boys (6 and 1) woke up. This frightened me, immensely… I started looking into smoke detectors that not only make a high pitched sound but also flash. I have not gotten them, but will be soon. I let you know how they work.
.:Visit A Fire Station:.
If possible, take a trip to your local Fire Station. It’s great for the kids to see a firefighter, their equipment, and the station. The firefighters will normally show the kids how they get dressed in all their gear which is great. This helps get rid of some of the fear kids can experience if they see a fully dressed firefighter come into their house. Some kids are so afraid of the scary man that they don’t scream for help.
.:Make A Fire truck:.
After reading books about fire safety and fire trucks, why not make one! I found a great template on Making Learning Fun. Depending on the age of your children you could cut the pieces out yourself and have them piece it together or you could 
have the kiddos mastermind the whole project. I loved the coiled, interactive hose idea. You could also include a ladder that moved up and down, simply by attaching a white piece of paper with a ladder drawn on it using a brass brad. While you glue the pieces on, talk with your little people about the different shapes that are being used to create the truck.
http://www.brimfulcuriosities.com/2010/05/firehouse-by-mark-teague-book-review.html
Snacks:
*1 ½ Graham Crackers
*Red icing
*Mini Oreo Cookies
*1 Starburst Candy
*1 Gumdrop
*5 Mini Pretzel Sticks
http://kindergals.blogspot.com/2012/09/are-you-city-girlboy.html
*Handful of Grapes – halved
*Mini Pretzel Sticks – broken in half
*Cheddar Cheese – cut to look like flames
*Shredded Carrot sticks – flames