Public Service Lesson Plan

One of the goals of the Homeland Security Committee's public service effort is to encourage Section members to foster emergency preparedness in their communities. One method for doing so is through teaching in their local schools. To encourage our members to go into schools, the Homeland Security Committee is providing a lesson plan from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Ready.gov website.

Click here to access the materials. http://www.ready.gov/overview1.html

The lesson plan is designed for eighth through twelfth graders, and is intended to educate them about the three steps they need to take to be prepared for the unexpected. The students will learn how to make a kit of emergency supplies, create an emergency plan for themselves and their families, and become informed about what might happen in case of biological, chemical or radiation threats, explosions, or nuclear blasts. Also, brochures to hand out at the school are accessible from the Ready.gov website at http://www.ready.gov/ready/pdf_brochure.jhtml. Please download the brochures and take plenty with you to the school to help save any costs the school may incur in reprinting them. Additional information regarding preparing for unexpected emergencies is provided by the Red Cross in Spanish at the following link: http://www.redcross.org/services/disaster/0,1082,0_589_,00.html.

Contact the school or teacher as early as possible to give teachers sufficient time to work the presentation into their lesson plan. Consider contacting schools in disadvantaged communities rather than just the schools in your neighborhood. Invite your colleagues to participate! And above all…..make it a positive experience!