Pedagogy

Safety Activity Lesson Plan
Activity title  How Does Fire Start
Curriculum area Preschool
Materials needed Cardboard, Pencil, Crayons, Scissors, Bond Papers, Glue, Tape
Location and setup of activity Inside the classroom, home extension activity
Number of children and adults 3 Children (Preschool), 2 to 3 Adults (Teacher, Parents)

Preparation

Prepare materials needed.

Make a large reader book entitled  How Does Fire Start . Under the title, make additional text sub-headings Matches Start Fire, Fireplace Start Fire, Candles Start Fire and Campfire Start Fire. On the left side of each sub-headings, draw and color the images of Matches, Fireplace, Candles and Campfire.

Using cardboard a cardboard, draw a large picture of a flame. Color it, and cut it out. Make at least 3 to 4 flame pictures.

Specific behavioral objectives

Children will understand the importance of fire safety and how they can take part in preventing fire.

Developmental skills necessary for success

Children use their skills in listening, understanding and participation in class discussions and follow-up activity. Teacher must be patient and well-coordinated with the children for the success of the activity.

Getting Started

Gather all the participants,and explain what the activity is all about.

Procedure
First, place the  How Does Fire Start  reader book in front of the class. Discuss to the class how do fires start. Next, point the pictures that start fire, and assist the children in reading the sub-headings. Make them repeat what they have read while pointing to the pictures again, to be sure that they have really understood the causes of fire.

Next, explain to them how they can avoid the causes of fire. For example, Matches   should not be played with , Campfire   should not be left unattended and do not get too near to the flame, Candles   should not be played with and left unattended, Fireplace   do not play with the flame and keep the screen close.

Then, using the cut-out flame pictures, attach one to the teachers back by taping it, and the remaining three to the childrens back. Now, discuss to the children what to do in case their clothes are on fire. Act out the  stop, drop and roll  drill, and tell them its importance   it can stop the fire from continuously burning their clothes.. Tell them to repeat the  stop, drop and roll  until the flame on their clothes goes out.

Discussion
The main idea for the large reader book entitled  How Does Fire Start , is for the children to be familiar with the concept of fire. They participate in class discussion and enhance their vocabulary skills. The  stop, drop and roll  teaches the children what to do in case of an emergency by having them act out the drill. This enhances their participation during class activity.

Home extension activity
Tell the parents about the activity that you did with their children. Let them also participate in home activity such as making fire safety crafts like  Fireman Craft  and  Fire Truck Craft .

For the fireman craft, let the child draw on a cardboard a picture of a fireman. Color, paint and cut the picture out. For the fire truck craft, have the child draw a picture of hisher head as well as a picture of a fire truck. Color, paint and cut out both of the pictures. Next, glue the cut out head on the windshield of the fire truck.

The crafts will be placed inside the classrooms bulletin board for display.

Cleanup
Let the children participate in cleaning up the mess inside the classroom after the activity. They must also help their parents clean up after their home extension activity.

Evaluation
In the  How Does Fire Start , children is introduced to the concepts of how fires begin. They participated in reading the text subheadings, enhancing their vocabulary skills. In the further discussions, they were encouraged to point out the necessary factors that can contribute to fire and learned how to avoid it. The teacher also learned the importance of being patient during the entire activity.

The childrens motor skills and participation are further encouraged during the  stop, drop and roll  activity. They learned not to panic when a fire gets on their clothes, and how to avoid it by using the drill. It important for them to realize that running to their parents during the situation is not a good solution rather a dangerous one . The  stop, drop and roll  also encouraged teacher to entertain the children by acting out the activity.

In the home extension activity fireman and fire truck craft-making, the parents also participated in teaching their children the role of a fireman and fire truck during cases of fire. The childrens abilities in craft-making, drawing and creativity are further develop in this activity. It is also a good way for the parents to bond with their children. The activity also widened the childrens imagination by pretending to be a fireman or driving a fire truck.

Children also participated in the cleanup activity afterwards, which is a good way to develop their sense of independence in making chores.

The fire safety activity is a great way for the children to learn many lessons not only with fire prevention, but also with class participation and skills development.