Prepared, not Scared

Given the recent school shooting, like most parents, I’ve been feeling nervous about the safety of my little ones. I just couldn’t stop myself from thinking how helpless my 3- and 5- year olds would have been in that situation and it had me wanting to look into home schooling. I have to trust that their school is preparing them for emergencies at school, but I need to augment that. It’s time for us to talk more about safety.

FIRE!

Oddly, driving home from school yesterday a car in front of us on the side of the road caught fire. My kids were fascinated. So today, after naps, we started with fire safety. I think that this one will be pretty straightforward because we’ve talked about fire safety a lot, firemen visit the school, we visited a fire station, etc. I ask the kiddies casually, what do you do if there is a fire in the house?

Abby says, “Check if the fire is in the fireplace. Then get hot cocoa.”

Ok, if the fire is not in the fireplace, then what?

Abby says, “roll around doing front rolls and back rolls.”

Briana says, “No, first you call that number. 6969. No, 999.”

Abby helps, “It’s 11.”

They agree. “You call 11. Then you roll on the ground.”

Eek. Time for a refresher. I tell them, “You call NINE-11.” Then I decide that they need something to reinforce that. I tell them that they will each make their own refrigerator magnets with their safety info on it so that they can look quickly in an emergency.

I am all for the repurposing and semi-homemade stuff, so here’s the quick and simple way to make customized refrigerator magnets. First, get an old refrigerator magnet. Second, get a sticky address label and use it to cover up the refrigerator magnet. Trim it if necessary. Third, decorate. Simple. Fun. Reinforcement.

Abby puts 911 but then says that there is too much space on hers so she adds another one. She repeats multiple times that she knows the number is just 911 so I don’t make her redo her magnet.

  

I just put this pic to show that most of the refrigerator magnets that we have (like that purple and black one that we used) are almost identical in dimensions to Avery mailing labels 18163. We only have to trim the edges.

  

There they are on our refrigerator for reference if needed.

  

While this very  quick and easy craft is going on, we discuss actual action plans and role play. So if there’s a fire and Mommy is gone (Why am I leaving preschoolers in the house alone in this game? Because “do what Mommy says” ends the activity and autonomy.)

They now know the number and say “Call 911.” I pretend to be a 911 operator. “Where are you?” I say on Abby’s turn. She replies, “In a house that’s big and its far faaar from Philadelphia so you’ll need a car to find me.” Um…we don’t even live in Pennsylvania! (They have grandparents in Philly.) I ask Bree what our address is and she can’t remember either. So we make another emergency information magnet with our address.

Then we start over.

They both say “Call 911.” And get through the call. Then what?  “Then find your sister. Then roll out of the house.”

I like that they are looking out for each other, but we have to talk some more about the “find your sister” part. It’s great to first look for your sister but if you can’t find her, just go outside as quickly as you can and tell an adult that you don’t know where your sister is. Why? Your sister might already be outside.

We talk about all the ways out of the house and I say that if there is smoke they should crawl out, not roll unless they are actually on fire themselves.

Briana asks if she can get her blanket so blanket doesn’t burn up. I tell her that if she is with blanket already she can grab him. Otherwise leave him behind and get to safety. A fireman can try to rescue blanket.

STRANGER!

Fire safety settled, we move on. What if a stranger comes to the house?

“Don’t let them in.” Abby knows.

“Never never never get in the car with a stranger!” Briana remembers.

Nice! What if you don’t let him in an he tries to get in anyway?

Abby screams “RUUUNNNN!!! Then hide in your bed under the covers. If he comes up throw water on him.”

Bree adds, “Or instead of water you can make a really scary face at him until he gets scared and runs away.”

I’m starting to see how someone came up with Home Alone.

We talk about places in the house to hide (sorry, they’re not good hiding spots if I blog where they are). I add that if they pass a phone they should grab it and take it with them to their hiding spot. Why? To call…. 911! Yep. Good! “And then I can call my friend ***?” Bree asks. No. Make no more calls after you call 911. Remember you are playing hide and seek with the bad stranger so you don’t want to make any noise and be found.

EARTHQUAKE! OR TORNADO!

One last one.  What do we do in case of an earthquake?

Simultaneously the girls say “Get an elephant!” Why? This must be a book they read at school.

We spend some silly minutes talking about how we’d get an elephant and what we’d do with it. Then I show them how to duck their heads and take cover. I say that if there is a tornado you get in the bathtub, cover up, and then duck and cover. We do that so we don't get hurt. Our back is stronger than our heads or bellies.

We practice and I take pics, but they are in bathing suits (don’t ask! kiddies!) so I won’t post those pics.

***

As we finish up, Abby tells me that she feels a little bit scared now. I luck into a rhyme.

“You’ll never be scared if you’re prepared!”

I like that! So does she.

<3 Pedigreed Housewife