The Pillowcase Project Learn. Practice. Share.

The Pillowcase Project Learn. Practice. Share. PART 6: LOCAL HAZARD SUPPLEMENT (10 MINUTES) Wildfire Preparedness Learning Objectives Students will be able to explain what causes wildfires. Students will understand what happens during a wildfire and the risks involved. Students will learn the best ways to stay safe during a wildfire. Key Facts for Presenters A wildfire is any unwanted, unplanned, damaging fire that burns forest, shrub, or grass. Foresters sometimes use fire to restore a fire-adapted ecosystem, clearing away dead vegetation and overgrowth to promote biodiversity; such prescribed burns are not wildfires. Wildfires are sometimes caused by lightning, but nine out of ten wildfires are caused by human carelessness. Wildfires are most common during hot, dry weather and typically start during the middle of the day or early afternoon, when the sun is very hot. Wildfires can quickly destroy thousands of acres of forest or grassland, and they pose a threat to families that live in or near these areas. Wildfires also produce large plumes of smoke that can affect respiratory health. To prepare for a wildfire emergency, families should keep a space 30 feet wide around their home clear of brush and dead leaves and branches. They can also plant fire-resistant shrubs and trees to help protect their home. And they should have household fire-fighting tools (bucket, rake, shovel) and a garden hose that is long enough to reach around the home, so that they can put out small fires if necessary. During a wildfire emergency, families should listen to the news for updates on the situation and close all doors and windows to keep the indoor air smoke-free. Families that are directed to evacuate by local authorities should do so immediately. Follow the designated evacuation route. If there is no designated evacuation route, choose a safe route heading away from the fire. It is important to be aware of the fire s direction and speed so you can change your evacuation route if necessary. PRESENTER NOTES SCRIPT ÎÎSo, where do wildfires happen? Call on 1-2 students for a response. Explain how wildfires pose a threat to populated areas: ÎÎThat s right! Wildfires mostly happen in forests or grassland. But once a wildfire gets going, it can keep on burning when it gets to a neighborhood or even the grass along a highway. That s why everyone in our area should be prepared for a wildfire emergency. 1

PRESENTER NOTES SCRIPT ÎÎDo you know what causes most wildfires? Call on 1-2 students for a response. Explain how most wildfires are caused by human carelessness: ÎÎThat s right! Nine out of ten wildfires are started by people being careless with fire outdoors. ÎÎUsually it s people who don t put out their campfire all the way, or who toss away a cigarette without putting it out, or who leave a barbecue grill burning while they go off to do something else. ÎÎBut wildfires also get started when people burn dead leaves without taking the right precautions, or when they shoot off fireworks, or drive off-road without realizing that the heat from their engine can start a fire in dry grass. ÎÎSo what can we do to stay safe from wildfires? Call on 1-2 students for a response. Explain how to be prepared for wildfires: ÎÎThose are all good ideas. The best idea is to prevent wildfires by being careful with fire outdoors. ÎÎIf you live close to where a wildfire might happen, you can also be prepared by clearing a wide space around your home to help keep a wildfire away. You can help the grownups in your home clear away brush and dead leaves and branches and anything else that might catch on fire. Grownups can also plant fire-resistant shrubs and trees to help protect the house. ÎÎYou should also check that you have fire-fighting tools at home buckets, rakes, shovels, a hose that reaches all the way around the house so that the grownups in your home can put out small fires that might turn into a wildfire. ÎÎNow, what if a wildfire gets started? What should you do? Call on 1-2 students for a response. Explain how to stay safe during a wildfire emergency: ÎÎYou ve got the right idea! Whenever a wildfire is burning near your home, you and your family should listen to the news for updates on the fire, to find out if it is headed your way, and keep all the doors and windows closed tight to keep out the smoke from the wildfire. Î Î If the wildfire does start heading your way, local authorities will tell you to evacuate that means leave your home and go to a safe place. If your family is told to evacuate, do it fast. The local authorities will usually tell you the best route to take. If they don t, your family should choose a safe route that heads away from the wildfire, and you should remind them to listen to the news or watch the smoke to make sure you re always driving away from the wildfire, even if it changes directions. 2

PRESENTER NOTES SCRIPT ÎÎ-Do you know who else might tell you when it s time to evacuate because of a wildfire? Encourage students to guess until they get close to the answer Animals! Explain how animals respond to the threat of wildfire and bounce back afterward. ÎÎThat s right! Animals evacuate when there s a wildfire, just like people should. You might see animals running by your home, or birds flying away from the wildfire. That s a signal that your family should check the news to find out if it s time for you to evacuate, too. ÎÎAnd animals can teach us about bouncing back after a wildfire. Once things cool off, they start coming back. As the trees and other plants grow back, the animals get their homes back and pretty soon, they re living their normal lives again all because they evacuated before it was too late! Lead students in one of the Practice Activities below. ÎÎSo, are you ready to practice what we ve learned about being prepared for wildfires? Lead students in one of the Sharing Activities below. ÎÎNow let s share what we ve learned. Wrap-up with a review: ÎÎWhat causes most wildfires? A: People being careless with fire outdoors. ÎÎHow can you keep your home safe from wildfire smoke? A: Keep your doors and windows closed. ÎÎWhat should you do if a wildfire is headed your way? A: Evacuate to a safer place. Transition: Î Î So, now you re prepared for wildfires. But remember, you need to share what you ve learned to help everyone be prepared. So later today, remind someone that, around here, we all have to be prepared for wildfire. Even better, when you go home, share you ve learned and make a plan to stay safe if a wildfire happens. 3

WILDFIRE PREPAREDNESS ACTIVITIES Practice Activities Practice Dash Divide students into teams of 5-6 for a takeoff on Jeopardy. Explain that you will read an answer and that the student teams will compete by having one team member race toward you for the chance to give the correct question. The first student to arrive gives the question and wins a point for his/her team if correct, or loses a point if incorrect. Encourage students to figure out the correct question as a team before sending their runner toward you. Example answers and questions: 1. Nine out of ten How many wildfires are caused by people being careless with fire outdoors? 2. The heat from an engine What can cause a wildfire when people drive off-road? 3. A barbecue grill What can cause a wildfire if you leave it unattended? 4. A wide space around the home Where should you clear away brush and dead leaves and branches to help protect your home from wildfire? 5. Close the doors and windows What should you do to keep wildfire smoke out of your home? 6. Watch the smoke What should you do to be sure you are moving away from a wildfire when you evacuate? No Doubt It s Out Act out the steps for extinguishing an outdoor fire, then have students act out the steps with you: 1. DROWN the fire with a bucket of water. 2. STIR the ashes and water together into a mud pie muck. 3. DROWN the ashes with another bucket of water and mix it into the muck. 4. FEEL for heat by holding your hand close over the mucky ashes. 5. If it s too hot to touch, it s too hot to leave start the process over again. Sharing Activities Divide students into small groups of 5-6 each and appoint a spokesperson for each group. Have all groups discuss one of the scenarios below and come up with ideas for what to do in that situation. Have the group spokesperson report on each group s ideas, then lead a whole group discussion to decide on the best way to handle the situation Cleaning Up There was a wildfire burning near Fernando s town. Fernando and his family heard on the news that the wind was blowing the fire in their direction, so they knew they had to evacuate. They went to stay with Fernando s cousin until the authorities finally said they could go back home. 4

Fernando was worried that his home might have been destroyed by the wildfire, so he was happy to see that it was still standing. But then he saw the mess! Firefighters had sprayed fire-fighting foam all over the roof and deck, and inside everything was covered with soot the floors, the walls, even Fernando s bed! His parents said they d have to stay at his cousin s a few more days until they could get things cleaned up, and that made Fernando really upset. He wanted to stay in his own home. But then he remembered from The Pillowcase Project that it s OK to feel upset and have troubled thoughts during an emergency everyone does. And he remembered that there are things he could do to help him cope with those thoughts and feelings. What coping skills could Fernando use to help him cope with this emergency, and his thoughts and feelings about what had happened and how hard it was going to be to get back home? Answer: Taking slow breaths to stay calm. Bringing a buddy, like his cousin, to help with the clean up, so he won t feel alone. Singing a favorite song with his family while they clean up, or telling each other favorite stories, so he doesn t think so much about how he feels. Reminding each other how working together helps everyone get through a tough situation like cleaning up after a wildfire. Remembering that he and his family knew what to do when the wildfire headed their way and stayed safe by driving to his cousin s. Listening to grownups for other ways to help each other bounce back from this emergency. Fighting Fire With Fire? Forest scientists have found out that one way to prevent wildfires is to burn away the dead branches and leaves that pile up in a forest. All that dry wood adds fuel to a wildfire, making it bigger and more dangerous. So they use a controlled fire to burn the fuel away. Then, once the dead wood is gone, the forest can grow back stronger. But there are some people who don t agree with the scientists. They think we should keep all fire out of the forest. And they worry that a controlled fire might burn out of control. What do you think? Work in your group to come up with reasons for both sides in this debate. Then share your ideas in a class discussion, and decide whether it s smart to fight fire with fire. Answer: Students should recognize that, try as we might, we cannot keep all fire out of our forests. In fact, fires started by lightning strikes have always been a natural part of the forest ecology. With more people living in and near our forests, we have tried to protect ourselves by putting out every forest fire. But that has caused some forests to become filled with dead, dry vegetation that could fuel a wildfire too big for firefighters to put out. Forest scientists don t want to take that chance. They know it s smart to burn away the dead wood so that a big wildfire can t get started, and so that the forest can grow back healthy again. 5

The Pillowcase Project Learn. Practice. Share. REPRODUCIBLE MASTER Wildfire Preparedness Sharing Activities Read the activity assigned to your group. Then talk with the members of your group to come up with ideas for that situation. Help the spokesperson for your group take notes on the group s ideas. After your spokesperson shares your group s ideas with the class, join in the discussion to decide on the best ideas for the situation. Cleaning Up There was a wildfire burning near Fernando s town. Fernando and his family heard on the news that the wind was blowing the fire in their direction, so they knew they had to evacuate. They went to stay with Fernando s cousin until the authorities finally said they could go back home. Fernando was worried that his home might have been destroyed by the wildfire, so he was happy to see that it was still standing. But then he saw the mess! Firefighters had sprayed fire-fighting foam all over the roof and deck, and inside everything was covered with soot the floors, the walls, even Fernando s bed! His parents said they d have to stay at his cousin s a few more days until they could get things cleaned up, and that made Fernando really upset. He wanted to stay in his own home. But then he remembered from The Pillowcase Project that it s OK to feel upset and have troubled thoughts during an emergency everyone does. And he remembered that there are things he could do to help him cope with those thoughts and feelings. What coping skills could Fernando use to help him cope with this emergency, and his thoughts and feelings about what had happened and how hard it was going to be to get back home? Fighting Fire With Fire? Forest scientists have found out that one way to prevent wildfires is to burn away the dead branches and leaves that pile up in a forest. All that dry wood adds fuel to a wildfire, making it bigger and more dangerous. So they use a controlled fire to burn the fuel away. Then, once the dead wood is gone, the forest can grow back stronger. But there are some people who don t agree with the scientists. They think we should keep all fire out of the forest. And they worry that a controlled fire might burn out of control. What do you think? Work in your group to come up with reasons for both sides in this debate. Then share your ideas in a class discussion and decide whether it s smart to fight fire with fire.

The Pillowcase Project Learn. Practice. Share. Student Pre-Assessment 1. Circle all of the items that should be in the emergency supplies kit you keep at home. First Aid Kit Fresh Fruit Radio Canned Food Flashlight 2. How often should a grownup test the smoke alarms in your home? A: Never B: Once a month C: Every Day D: Don t know 3. What should you take with you when you are escaping from a home fire? A: Nothing just get out fast B: Your pillowcase kit C: Your home fire escape plan D: Don t know 4. What can help you stay calm and relaxed during an emergency? A: Breathing with color B: Running around in circles C: Holding your breath D: Don t know 5. How can you help protect your home from wildfire? A: Test your smoke alarms every month B: Clear away dead leaves and branches from around the house C: Keep all doors and windows closed tight D: Don t Know

The Pillowcase Project Learn. Practice. Share. Student Post-Assessment 1. Circle all of the items that should be in the emergency supplies kit you keep at home. First Aid Kit Fresh Fruit Radio Canned Food Flashlight 2. How often should a grownup test the smoke alarms in your home? A: Never B: Once a month C: Every Day D: Don t know 3. What should you take with you when you are escaping from a home fire? A: Nothing just get out fast B: Your pillowcase kit C: Your home fire escape plan D: Don t know 4. What can help you stay calm and relaxed during an emergency? A: Breathing with color B: Running around in circles C: Holding your breath D: Don t know 5. How can you help protect your home from wildfire? A: Test your smoke alarms every month B: Clear away dead leaves and branches from around the house C: Keep all doors and windows closed tight D: Don t Know 6. Do you feel more prepared for an emergency? (Please circle yes or no) Yes No