A Teacher's Guide to
  Disaster Preparedness  

📋 Explore this Guide

September is National Preparedness Month

This September, SubjectToClimate has partnered with the American Red Cross to increase disaster preparedness and resiliency in your classroom. With a variety of informational resources for teachers and hands-on activities for students of all ages, you can make disaster prep easy and engaging. Equip your students with the life-saving knowledge and skills they need to confidently respond to and recover from emergencies by exploring our tips and resources today! 

When an emergency strikes, do you know what to do? Come learn with Pedro! Prepare with Pedro is a 30- to 45-minute preparedness education program for grades K-2 that teaches students how to BE PREPARED and TAKE ACTION for local hazards or home fires. 

Find Prepare with Pedro - Hazard Storybooks and Resources for Grades K-2 here!

Enjoy our library of fun and engaging animated videos that help children learn how to stay safe during a variety of emergencies and cope with any thoughts or feelings that might come up along the way. 

Elementary

Talking about disasters with elementary students can be tricky to navigate. This section includes stories, videos, and activities specifically designed for younger students, focusing on resiliency to make these discussions easier and more approachable.

Secondary

Discuss disasters and risk management with your middle and high school students using these resources that highlight community resiliency and mental health support. Explore videos, podcasts, and activities that will help students understand and prepare for emergencies, while also addressing the emotional impact of these events.

Promote Resilience: 

Building up resilience in students plays an important role in helping them navigate emergencies. Incorporating SEL check-ins or SEL activities into lessons can help strengthen our students' ability to cope with stress from disasters. 

Be Prepared: 

Proper emergency planning and preparation are the foundation of a smooth safety response. Keep an emergency kit and first aid supplies in the classroom and review the basics of emergency management with your students. The more prepared they feel, the more confident they'll be in an actual emergency.

Set Procedures:

Make sure your students are familiar with the school's disaster protocols by providing clear and consistent information on procedures and evacuation routes. Visual aids during lessons and maps or posters in the classroom can serve as constant reminders so students can act quickly and safely in case of an emergency situation. 

Be Honest and Open: 

When we begin to discuss natural disasters in our classroom, students need to know why it is important to have the conversation. Be transparent about potential disaster risks while building trust in emergency preparedness plans and first responders.

Make it Interactive:

Engage students with disaster preparedness activities, such as games, simulations, or hands-on projects to make emergency scenarios feel less intense. Creating and applying disaster plans will encourage students to participate and promote retention.

Floods, hurricanes, and wildfires are becoming more frequent, and the devastating impacts on loved ones, homes, and communities can be overwhelming for students. 

As teachers, you can build confidence in your classroom by exploring the simple steps students and their families can take to help prepare and protect their household. It’s easy to learn through our Be Red Cross Ready program. 

Hosted by the American Red Cross, Be Red Cross Ready is a national, standardized preparedness education curriculum taught by trained presenters. The program is designed to help people understand, prepare for, and respond appropriately to disasters. 

To schedule a presentation with a trained American Red Cross presenter, visit redcross.org and enter your zip code under the "Your Local Red Cross" tab. Start getting prepared today by using our Be Red Cross Ready resources!

View types of disasters and print out your own preparedness checklists here. 

Help Keep Your Community Safe. Climate change is causing more extreme weather events. The American Red Cross built a FREE Emergency app to help families prepare. It is simple to use and lets you customize 40 different weather alerts with fast notifications. It provides step-by-step guides to help you prepare and explains how climate change has impacted each hazard. Parents can easily find open Red Cross shelters with an interactive map. The mobile app is accessible in English or Spanish with an easy-to-find language toggle and full weather alerts in both Spanish and English. The Emergency app is accessible so people with disabilities can use it. Compatible with Apple Watch and Android Wearable devices. 

Share this Emergency app with parents using a class newsletter, a post on your class website, or a simple handout!

Download the free Emergency app today. Available in English and Spanish. Search "American Red Cross" in your app store or text "GETEMERGENCY" to 90999. Available in the App Store® or Google Play™.

  In Partnership with: 

American Red Cross

The mission of the American Red Cross is to prevent and alleviate human suffering in the face of emergencies by mobilizing the power of volunteers and the generosity of donors. As the climate crisis worsens, the Red Cross is witnessing firsthand how disasters are becoming more frequent and intense. Now more than ever, families need to be ready for extreme weather. The Red Cross works closely with schools and youth-serving organizations to provide emergency preparedness education to young people to build resilience in communities across the country and abroad.

DISCLAIMER
The American Red Cross name, logo and copyrighted materials are used with its permission, which in no way constitutes an endorsement, express or implied, of any product, service, company, opinion or political position. The American Red Cross name and logo are registered trademarks owned by the American National Red Cross. For more information about the American Red Cross, please visit redcross.org.

Next Steps

We hope these resources provide you with everything you need to ensure your students are ready to face emergencies confidently. Together we can make National Preparedness Month 2024 a success by diving into safety topics and empowering our students to prioritize resiliency in the face of disasters. Visit SubjectToClimate.org and redcross.org for more resources on preparing and coping with public safety emergencies.