Wow! It's finally the end of the (school) year, and we are ALL ready for a break. If you are anything like me though, you will wonder what your students are doing and if they are being safe. So, before you send your students off, be sure to review how to remain safe this summer.
I've compiled a list of free resources from different educators and educational sites for you to use in the classroom. Simply press play and/or download them. Please don't allow these important discussions to pass by before they leave your care.
With each section, I am going to include some VERY REAL statistics. This is not to scare you, but to inform and to highlight how imperative these lessons are.
Water Safety
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), from 2005-2014, there were an average of 3,536 fatal unintentional drownings (non-boating related) annually in the United States — about ten deaths per day. An additional 332 people died each year from drowning in boating-related incidents. About one in five people who die from drowning are children 14 and younger. For every child who dies from drowning, another five receive emergency department care for nonfatal submersion injuries.
*Boys are two times more likely to drown than girls.
*African-American children ages 5 to 14 are three times more likely to drown than white children.
*Non-swimming pool drownings are more common among low-income children.
Water Safety Pledge for Students from Scholastic.com
https://printables.scholastic.com/shop/prcontent/Water-Safety-Rules-and-Pledge/9780439503754-008
Water Safety Poem from The Social Studies Showroom on TPT
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Water-Safety-Poem-1802001
Bobber the Water Safety Dog from TeamSaintLouis- YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tc0CiT7vmJQ
Video Modeling: Water Safety from Neverland Aquatics- YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3cID86hw0k
Beach Safety Video from Rest Bay - YouTube (This video discusses beaches in Australia but the information is relevant for any beach.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_6mP_vLU5s&t=16s
Sun Safety
Overexposure to sun now, can result in skin cancer later in life. While people with darker skin do have more natural protectants in their skin, they can still be affected by harmful UV rays.
The Dangers of UV Exposure
You can sunburn even on a cloudy day.
On average, children get 3 times more exposure than adults.
Concrete, sand, water, and snow reflect 85% to 90% of the sun's UV rays.
Depletion of Earth's ozone continues to increase your exposure to UV rays.
Skin Cancer
In some parts of the world, melanoma is increasing at rates faster than any other cancer.
More than 1.2 million new cases of skin cancer are diagnosed each year in the US.
Melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, kills one person every hour.
One blistering sunburn can double a child's lifetime risk of developing skin cancer.
Kid Friendly Article about Sun Safety from KidsHealth.org
http://kidshealth.org/en/parents/sun-safety.html#
Bee Safe in the Sun Poster from Cap'n Pete's Power PE on TPT
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Sun-Safe-Poster-Bee-Safe-in-the-Sun-2839578
At the Beach Emergent Reader Activity by Megan Wummer on TPT
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/At-the-Beach-Emergent-Reader-708925
George the Sun Safe Superstar from AXA PPP Healthcare on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwyqaLnsi5Q
Stay Safe in the Sun Song from Disney Junior Doc McStuffins on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4H6P_n3k6xc
Fire Safety
According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), most deaths, injuries, and damage from child playing fires occur in home structure fires. An average of 7,100 home structure fires per year caused by play were reported between 2007 and 2011, causing annual averages of 77 civilian deaths, 750 civilian injuries, and $172 million in property damage. They are more common during the month of July, and peak between the hours of 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.
Half of home playing structure fires (52%) had a lighter as their heat source, and matches were the heat source in 18% of fires. Fires started by lighters or matches caused 82% of civilian deaths.
The majority of structure fires in homes caused by play were started by males (83%). Forty-three percent of the fires were started by a child under age 6. Older children were more likely to start outside fires, with two of five (38%) of all outside or unclassified fires started by a child between the ages of 10 and 12.
Outside or unclassified playing fires (excluding trash or rubbish fires) peak during the afternoon hours, between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. Nearly one-quarter of these fires (24%) were started during the month of July, likely influenced by fires during the July 4th holiday. Fireworks were the heat source in 30% of all non-trash outside or unclassified fires caused by fireplay, with lighters the heat source in 29% of the fires and matches the heat source in 20%.
Fire Safety Rules Coloring Sheet from Ashlee Kelley Harper on TPT
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Fire-Safety-Rules-Coloring-Sheet-921082
Fire Safety What Ifs? from Elementary Matters on TPT
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Fire-Safety-What-ifs-159688
Fire Escape Plan from WoWorksheets on TPT (On Page 5 students can draw an escape plan)
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/FreeDownload/Fire-Safety-Free-2169564
Fire Safety Rap from Harry Kindergarten Music on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_5FqaWTj9c
Fire Safety-Have 2 Ways Out from FEMA on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9KSFRq4rXA
Stop, Drop and Roll from AnimotionInc on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUdxOmHgeZ4
Personal Safety
Abduction & Sexual Abuse
Every 40 seconds in the United States, a child becomes missing or is abducted.
Acquaintance kidnapping involves a comparatively high percentage of juvenile perpetrators, has the largest percentage of female and teenage victims, is more often associated with other crimes (especially sexual and physical assault), occurs at homes and residences, and has the highest percentage of injured victims.
Stranger kidnapping victimizes more females than males, occurs primarily at outdoor locations, victimizes both teenagers and school-age children, is associated with sexual assaults in the case of girl victims and robberies in the case of boy victims (although not exclusively so), and is the type of kidnapping most likely to involve the use of a firearm.
Only about one child out of each 10,000 missing children reported to the local police is not found alive. However, about 20 percent of the children reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in nonfamily abductions are not found alive.
In 80 percent of abductions by strangers, the first contact between the child and the abductor occurs within a quarter mile of the child's home.
Most potential abductors grab their victims on the street or try to lure them into their vehicles.
About 74 percent of the victims of non family child abduction are girls.
Acting quickly is critical. Seventy-four percent of abducted children who are ultimately murdered are dead within three hours of the abduction.
New research suggests that approximately 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 20 boys report experiencing childhood sexual abuse before the age of 18.1
The highest percentage of sexual abuse victims are under the age of nine.
Of the confirmed cases of child abuse and neglect in 2012, 9 percent of cases were sexual abuse (these are only reported cases; it’s difficult to know how many cases of child sexual abuse go unreported every year).3
Just like the victims of child sexual abuse, offenders come from all walks of life.
“Stranger danger” is a myth: in 90 percent of cases, sexually abused children know the person abusing them.4
Offenders can be friends, family members, neighbors, teachers, or coaches.
Offenders are men, women, or other children—in fact, nearly 36 percent of offenders are older children or teenagers.5
Child sexual abuse can happen anywhere children are found, such as schools, homes, sports programs, and other youth programs.
Free Downloadable Scenarios and Activities about Owning Your Body from The Mama Bear Effect
http://themamabeareffect.org/coloring-pages.html
Stranger Danger Worksheets from Free-For-Kids.com
http://www.free-for-kids.com/stranger-danger-worksheets-2.shtml
Child Safety Coloring and Activity Book from Kidlutions.blogspot.com (Multiple pages-Needs to be vetted for age appropriateness)
http://kidlutions.blogspot.com/2012/01/keeping-kids-safefree-download-fire-gun.html
*View the below videos in entirety before showing them to your students. Be sure to check if your school requires a parental agreement before showing.*
Keep Your Hands to Yourself from WonderGroveKids on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8iTPPh1d2j8
Safe and Unsafe Touch from WonderGroveKids on Youtube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNTUMNKSNwk
Secrets from Fight Child Abuse on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAD17zMgjHc
Enjoy Your Summer Break! :)
Resources:
https://www.cdc.gov/homeandrecreationalsafety/water-safety/waterinjuries-factsheet.html
http://www.sunsafetyalliance.org/bare_facts.html
http://www.parents.com/kids/safety/stranger-safety/child-abduction-facts/
https://www.twinkl.com/resource/us-t-2547030-summer-why-and-because-scene-and-question-cards
#endoftheyear #summersafety #bikesafety #firesafety #watersafety #secondstep #safetouches #studentsafety #summerbreak #endoftheyearlessonplans #sexualabuse #physicalabuse #keepingkidssafe #strangerdanger #parent #teacherblog