1-2-3 Come Do A Few More Fire Safety Activities With Me

I think one of the most important things that I teach my Y5s is fire safety; however, with all of our discussions about not playing with matches, houses burning down, and people getting hurt, I discovered that my students were coming away with the idea that fire was bad.

Simply ask for a thumbs up or down whether your kiddos think fire is good or bad; and I think you’ll find like I did, that most, if not all of your students will give you a thumbs down, emphatically believing that fire is bad!

Since fire is truly beneficial and a necessary part of everyday life, I feel there’s a need to explain this to young children.

It’s important that they learn to respect fire without fearing it. Children need to understand the difference between good fires and bad fires, as well as fire’s beneficial and harmful effects.

With these things in mind, I created this “Good Fire-Bad Fire” packet. These quick, easy & fun activities will help children develop a healthy understanding of fire, so they are able to identify fire as a necessary part of their lives and an essential tool.

The packet includes:

* A simple way to help students realize that fire can be good is to show them pictures, so I've included 65 real photographs of fires which can be categorized by children as good or bad.
Choose a dozen or so and use them for . . .

* flashcards, where students give you a thumbs up or down,
* discussion
* an independent center where children sort the photographs into the 2 “good/bad fire” file folders

*a puzzle center (Cut the photographs in half or in quarters).
* writing prompts (There are 4 graphic organizers, plus 6 “complete the prompt” worksheets for this)
* a bulletin board displaying the pictures under the “good fire/bad fire” header cards.

* I’ve also included a “Flip the Flame” craftivity, where students color, cut and glue the “happy” good flame and the “angry” bad flame back-to-back on a Popsicle stick.

You show a photograph asking “Is this a good or bad fire?” Children flip their flame and hold up their answer.

After sharing and discussing the photographs, children will be able to see that each type of fire has common denominators: good fires are planned, desired, beneficial and supervised by an adult; bad fires are not.

* Two, writing prompt craftivities are a fun way for students to show this understanding, and allow you to check comprehension. 

The first one is a 3D flame "dangler" in two colors. (One with characteristics of good fires, the other bad.) 

The other craftivity is a side-by-side comparison.

Completed projects make a terrific bulletin board or hallway wall display too. 

Younger kiddos can show this knowledge with several worksheet options.

I've included full color patterns, so you can easily make a sample to share, or use for further explanation.

The good fire-bad fire sorting worksheet (see photograph) could also be made into an independent center.

Simply laminate and trim the pieces.  To make this self-correcting, put a G or B on the back of each picture.

* The packet also includes a graphing activity, several other worksheets, posters and a bookmark. 

Besides being able to differentiate between good and bad fires, I wanted another way to review all of the fire safety rules my students were learning. 

As with many of my activities, I like to "kill two birds with one stone",  so I designed these "Fire Safety Fix the Sentence" cards. 

These 36, fire safety-themed sentence cards, are a quick, easy and fun way to review a variety of fire safety related facts, while practicing capitalization and end punctuation.

Read the cards together as a whole group to practice a lot of Dolch sight words.
Choose a student to come up and using a dry erase marker, circle letters that should be capitalized and then add end punctuation. (period, question mark & exclamation point).

For more practice, as an individual activity, have students choose X number of mini cards and rewrite the sentences correctly on the worksheet provided. 

One of the most important fire safety rules that I teach my students, is about dialing 9-1-1 in an emergency. So today's FREEBIE features a 9-1-1 song to the tune of "This Old Man".

There are 3 poster options for you to choose from.  I hope your kiddos enjoy it as much as mine.

Well that's it for today. I'm still in a daze that September is over and we are now in October!

My grama Lydia always said "The older you get the faster time flies." Now that I'm in my "sexy sixties" I find that to be especially true! 

Wishing you a day filled with sunshine and laughter for a happily-ever-after.

"Time is free, but it's priceless; you can't own it, but you can use it. You can't keep it, but you can spend it, and once you've lost it, you can never get it back." -Harvey Mackay

1-2-3 Come Do Some Fire Safety Activities With Me  

October is Fire Safety Month.  I truly believe fire safety is some of the most important information we can share with our students. 

With that in mind, I designed some quick, easy and fun activities that will help reinforce those skills.  Today's blog features 3 of my new packets.

First up, is some fire safety word fun. Studying fire safety provides a real opportunity to build important vocabulary.

Words like fire drill, smoke detector, hydrant, and fire extinguisher  may all be common for us, but they are brand new for most young children; so I designed this fun word work packet, which is appropriate for preschoolers through 2nd grade.

This diversity will also help you differentiate lessons for those who are struggling, those who are right where they should be, as well as having the ability to challenge others who are ready to advance.

You can use the pocket chart-size word cards in a pocket chart, or attach magnets and use them on your white board. You can also attach Velcro dots and use them on a flannel board.

Later, reinforce the vocabulary by using them as flashcards, then adding them to a “fire safety” word wall. I’ve included a “header” poster for this.

I’ve also made a template where the cards are grouped into 3 columns of word cards.
Print, laminate and trim. Toss them in a fire hat or other container and have your students pick X number of cards, which they can alphabetize on the ABC worksheet, or use to make sentences, using the “I can write sentences!” worksheet.

Students can also sort these mini word cards on the “Syllable Sorting” mat.  There’s a matching bookmark of the words, which children can keep in their writing journals.  For more practice, there are 2 word finds, along with an “ABC Me” worksheet.

Another way to practice vocabulary is choose whatever words are appropriate for your kiddos, write them on the board, and have them copy them into their “fire safety vocabulary booklet”, which fits in wonderfully for “Daily 5 word work” or your writing block. (There are 4 cover options).

Use the 24-colorful picture cards for Memory Match or “I Have; Who Has?” games.
Younger children can match picture to picture, while older children can match a picture card to a word card.

The packet also includes a “My Itty Bitty Word Booklet” as another fun way to build vocabulary. Children color the pictures, trace & write the words, then cut and collate the squares into a just-the-right-size booklet.  

Music is a super-fun way to build vocabulary as well.  Since my kiddos love singing "The Wheels On The Bus", I used that tune and made up "The Wheels On The Fire Truck" which also helps reinforce some fire safety rules. 

The packet includes . . .

* A song poster with the words.
* Colorful pocket chart cards you can refer to while you’re singing.  Later pass them out to see if children can sequence them in the correct order.
* To build vocabulary and practice writing skills, I’ve also included a flip booklet where students trace, write, color, cut and collate.

Finally, this fire truck "slider" craftivity, features some of the basic rules of fire safety.  

So that you can quickly and easily make a sample to share, I’ve included templates in full color.

There are also 2 black and white “slider” options for your kiddos. One without words for little ones, the other with a few words for students who are learning to read.

Children color the graphics, cut and glue their slider together, then slip it through the pre-cut slits on their fire truck.

Trucks can be run off on white paper so that children can color them, or to expedite things, give children a choice & run off on red and yellow construction paper. Students simply add some accent colors with crayons.

There’s also a set of 5 colorful posters to help explain the fire safety rules, which can later be used for a bulletin board or wall display.

I’ve also included a letter home to parents, should you want to have your students make and share their fire escape plan.

(Why teach rules, when there’s no follow through at home?)  

Because I think this is so important, I made the Fire Safety Escape Plan Letter today's featured FREEBIE.  Click on the link to grab your copy.

One never knows when this simple homework assignment might save a life. 

Well that's it for today.  I hope you found something useful. 

It's an absolutely gorgeous fall day, so it's time for a much-needed brain break.  Wishing you a carefree day. 

"Education is the passport to the future. For tomorrow belongs to the people who prepare for it today."

A big part of our fire safety studies includes learning about the emergency number 911.

Several years ago, one of my students was involved in a trailer fire. It was little Jose', just 6-years-old, who dialed 911. No need to convince me of the importance of making sure my kiddos know about fire safety and using their heads in a crisis.

With that incident in mind, it was a joy to put a lot of work into the 61-page, "Call 911 Fire Safety Packet", making sure you have a variety of simple & fun activities to keep students engaged, as they learn about this important emergency number.

Since my kiddos are just learning to recognize numbers, they often confuse 6s & 9s.

It makes no sense for them to recite “Call 911 in an emergency” if they haven’t practiced finding & pressing those numbers; so we practice on real, non-working cell phones, that parents have donated to our class.

Just as important as learning how to dial that number, is knowing when it’s appropriate to do so.

Keeping these things in mind, I designed this 911 packet, with quick, easy & super-fun activities that will ensure your students know how, as well as when, to dial this life saving number.

The packet includes:

* An emergent reader: “Who Ya Gonna Call?” with 24 Dolch sight words.

I titled the booklet that because of the catchy Ghostbusters tune, and have the music playing softly in the background, when my kiddos work on this activity.

When the refrain “Who ya gonna call?” is sung, my students yell out 911.

* Afterwards, we do the  “When Should I Call 911?” cell phone craftivity.

This not only reinforces the lesson, but tests comprehension. There are ...

* 2 song posters; 9-1-1 to the tune of “Brother John”, as well as “Call 9-1-1” to the tune of “If You’re Happy & You Know It”.

* A matching “flip phone craftivity” that displays the song inside.

* A “Rip & Tear” craftivity that helps strengthen finger muscles.

* A “100s chart, mystery number worksheet”, along with quite a few worksheets to practice the numbers 911.

* Five, colorful 911 number puzzles that practice sequencing numbers from 1-10, counting backwards from 10-1, plus skip counting by 2s & 10s.

I’ve included a black & white pattern as well, so that students can make their own puzzle. And finally . . .

* 911 “slap bracelets”, a bookmark and certificate of praise.

Click on the link to zip on over to my TpT shop, to take a look at this whopping 61-page 911 Activities packet , chock full of hands-on fire safety fun. 

Today's FREEBIE also has a 911 theme.  Students sing this 9-1-1 song to the tune of "This Old Man". I've included 3 poster optons.  

Well that's it for today. It's balmy out, despite the drizzle; the perfect kind of day to open the windows, air out the house and snuggle up with a good book and hot cup of cider.  Wishing you a relaxing day.

"Each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor."  ~Edgar Allan Poe

1-2-3 Come Do Some Fire Safety Activities With Me

I know there's a lot a teacher has to cram in each month, but I can't stress enough, how important it is to make time to cover some fire safety with your kiddos, as life skills certainly far out way report card standards, should a crisis arise. 

With time as a factor, I designed these quick, easy & fun activities. 

There's nothing quite like adding a little bit of craftiness to a lesson or writing prompt, to get students excited and down to business. 

Younger studetns can simply do the craft, while older students can complete writing prompts. 

I've up-dated & tweaked some of my favorites and tossed them into Diane's Dollar Deals in my TpT shop. 

Simply click on the photograph that you're interested in, to zip on over to take a look. The "Safety Matches" are my personal favorite.

The "Put Out the Fire" craftivity, includes a sweet song. This project provides wonderful fine motor practice, as students cut the "hose" spiral. 

My kiddos are always amazed at the "way cool" results. I've included 2 spiral posters as well, so you can take advantage of that teachable moment to build vocabulary.

The Stop Drop & Roll writing prompt craftivity, also includes a song.

Besides fire safety "craftivities", I've also up-dated the fire safety number puzzles.

There's now a total of 52, featuring 20 different pictures. 

The puzzles come in color, so you can use them for an independent math center, as well as black & white, so your students can make their own. 

The number puzzles come in both horizontal & vertical patterns, and help students sequence numbers from 1-10, count backwards from 10 -1, as well as skip count by 2s & 10s.

I have two FREEBIES for you today: a cute fire hat, as well as a fire truck-themed 10 frames packet.  I hope you find them useful. 

Since I didn't want this blog to get too long, I'm posting two articles today, as I have one more big fire safety packet to share with you.

Simply scroll down, to check out all of the super-fun & creative activities, that will help teach your kiddos about the 911 emergency number.  

There's another FREEBIE there too. Thanks for stopping by. 

"The most tangible of all visible mysteries - fire."  ~Leigh Hunt

1-2-3 Come Sing A Fire Safety Song With Me

Almost 15 years ago, my 1st graders enjoyed singing my version of The Wheels On The Bus Go 'Round and 'Round,  as I'd add all sorts of extra goofy things to the traditional favorite. 

When October rolled around, and we were studying fire safety, I thought it would be fun to substitute a fire truck for the bus.  My kiddos loved it. 

Well it's years later and I decided to build a Common Core packet around this silly little song.  While doing research, I even found a few people who had the same idea. ("Great minds think alike and all that..." )

Any woo, what started out to be just a few things, morphed into a whopping 69-page packet, and believe me, my brain is a bit fried. 

I had a few requests for some fire safety themed alphabet and number cards, so I threw them into the mix, and one thing led to another...

Take a peek, pick the items that suit your fancy, and let the fun begin. 

The Packet Includes:

• The song that started it all: Wheels On The Truck Go 'Round And 'Round
• Poster of the song.
• 9 pocket chart cards to go with the song
• Labeled fire truck poster
• Fine motor Popsicle stick fire truck activity
• Writing prompt graphic organizer page:  "If a fire truck could talk it might say . . ."

• A wheels on the fire truck upper and lowercase matching game, with answer key. 

Students place the uppercase letter circle on the first wheel and then match the lowercase letter circle to the back wheel.

• Upper and lowercase letter cards, with a 4-page tip list of what to do with them.
• A Kaboom game to make playing a variety of the other games like Memory Match and "I Have; Who Has?" even more fun.
• Number cards from 0-120, with a 2-page tip list of what to do with them. (I tried to keep the ABC and number cards small, to conserve ink and paper.)

• 11 number cards with numbers and their matching number words. (0-10).
• Ordinal number cards (1-10).
• Odd and Even Sorting Mat +
• 20 worksheets, which include the following:

1. Can-Are-Have
2. Label the truck
3. KWL
4. Match the pictures to the words
5. Unscramble the words.
6. Graphing shapes.
7. Trace and write the words in alphabetical order.
8. Re telling a story: Beginning-Middle-End
9. Describing fire trucks (Adjective activity).
10. How Many Words Can You Make? (Use the letters in fire truck.) I've included my list of 56 that I came up with. Great for vocabulary building.
11. Two cutting skill sheets.  One difficult with zig zag lines, the other simple with straight lines.
12. Two dot-to-dot worksheets.  One with all the letters of the alphabet, the other with numbers 1-30.
13. Two trace the numbers to to the fire. (Skip counting by 5's, the other #s 1-20).
14. Two trace the letters to the hydrant. (Uppercase and lowercase).
15. Match the number to the number word and finally,
16. Fire Trucks On A Roll a dice game to practice numbers, counting and addition. Whew!

 Click on the link to view/download the Common Core Wheels On The Truck Packet.

While looking for fire truck ideas, I came across a super-simple fire truck Make a Vehicle game over at Enchanted Learning. 

I always liked to give my Y5's some computer time, and this would make a quick, easy and fun independent activity to practice keyboarding skills etc.

I also found an excellent video on YouTube featuring real fire trucks.  It's only 2:44 minutes long.  My grandson was revited, but then he's only 2 and everything is pretty exciting.

If you're teaching numbers 1-10, Monster Fire Trucks is also a rather short video (4:18) that's kind of cute.  Certainly attention grabbing.

Well that's it for today. (Where has it gone?) I hope your kiddos enjoy learning, as their own wheels start turning.  I'm off for a romp outside to unclutter my mind.  Wishing you a fabulous fall!

"The road to success is dotted with many tempting parking places." -Author Unknown

1-2-3 Come Do Some Fire Safety Writing Prompt Craftivities With Me

I'm having a great time dreaming up quick and easy fire safety activities for October's Fire Prevention Month. I hope you find something here that you and your kiddos will enjoy.

One of my personal favorites is "Hot Tips For Fire Safety."  I designed a matchbook to feature the hot tips. Simply trim and fold a sheet of construction paper to make the matchbook. (Pattern included.)

On the outside of the matchbook it says: A perfect match: Smart kids and fire safety. 

Flip it open to find a list of hot tips at the top, and the matches on the bottom, with a warning to never play with matches.  

When everyone is done, review and discuss the tips. 

For writing practice, have older students make up a list of their own tips, or have them write additional advice on the back.  

Click on the link for the Hot Tips Fire Safety Matchbook craft.

My Y5's loved to make and wear hats and crowns, so I designed an easy fire helmet for your kiddos. Older students can write several fire safety facts on the front, back or rim. 

You could also make extra badges for children to wear.   They say: "I'm fire safety smart.  I'm alert, so I won't get hurt. "

For extra reinforcement, have students don their hat, pick a partner and give each other fire safety advice.

For more fire safety fun, make a flaming dangler.  This craftivity also reinforces the importance of not playing with fire.  I used the universal "no" sign to make the top portion, with a 3D flame dangling from the bottom. 

These look wonderful suspended from your ceiling, as they spin in the breeze. Older students can simply make the larger flame and use it to write 3 different fire safety ideas on it. 

I've included a list of fire safety writing prompts for them to choose from.   Click on the link to view/download the fire safety writing prompt craft.

Finally, while doing research, I came across a wonderful fire safety song to the tune of This Old Man. I used it on 3 poster options to help children remember to call 9-1-1 in an emergeny.

I've also included a smaller black and white version that students can color and take home to share with their families.  There are 3 on a page for quick printing.

Both places I found the song posted, did not know the author.  It was simply too cute not to share.  I hope you enjoy it too!

Well that's it for today.  Thanks for visiting.  It's time to find the rest of my October books.  Looking through stories always gives me zillions of ideas. 

What better way to spend a few hours.  I hope you can pop by tomorrow for the latest FREEBIES. Wishing you an ed-venturous day.

 "The men who try to do something and fail are infinitely better than those who try to do nothing and succeed." - Lloyd Jones

4 pages.

I made 3 fire safety poster options, using a fire safety song (author unknown) to help your students remember to dial 9-1-1 in an emergency.

 1-2-3 Come Do Some 911 Activities With Me

Teaching students that they can dial 911 in an emergency is extremely important.  I do this during Fire Safety Week. 

One of the things that we do is sit in a circle and pass around a variety of kinds of phones. We discuss their differences as we locate the numbers 911 on them. 

Each child takes a turn answering the question: "What number do you call in an emergency?" They reply 911 and then dial it on an old cell phone.  

I watch to make sure that they are pressing the 9 and not the 6.  Practice continues 'til each child has had a turn.  Listening to the number repeated 20+ times, as students take their turn, is beneficial reinforcement.

Afterwards, students pick a partner, and act out scenarios of when to call 911, taking turns dialing the number. I have a tub of different real phones that people have donated to us, so I have a nice supply of over 15  phones.  

It's important to remind students that they should only dial this number in a real emergency, because if they're just fooling around, they could tie up the line for someone who really needs help. 

For more practice, I designed two quick and easy fire safety crafts that are also fun ways to reinforce dialing 911 in an emergency. 

The first one is a paper cell phone.  I chose to draw Apple's Smart Phone, because of the play on words: "I'm smart. I know how to dial 911 in an emergency." that I typed at the top.

The phone flips open to reveal a cute "Call 911" song that your students will enjoy singing to the tune of "If You're Happy and You Know It." 

Older students can write a list of when to call 911 in the empty space on the left.

I've included a larger poster of the 911 song as well.  I did not write this little diddy. 

Quite a few years ago a fellow teacher shared it with me, so I have no idea where it came from. 

I've Googled it, and actually found it, but that teacher too did not know the author.

I also work on making sure that children are not mixing up the 9 with the number 6, so I have them color in the numbers on their paper cell phone. 

There's also a "Don't Be Fooled" worksheet, where students find and circle all of the 9's hiding amongst similar numbers and letters, like a 6, q, and p. 

For more practice, I've also included a trace and write 911 worksheet.

The 2nd craftivity is a large 911 that students fill in with pieces of torn red, yellow and orange construction paper. 

(I cut 1 inch strips of construction paper on a paper cutter.  Each child gets one of each color.) 

Ripping and tearing paper is wonderful fine motor practice that helps strengthen finger muscles. 

Children rip a pile of each color and then rub a glue stick over the 9 and press down the pieces of paper, continuing 'til all of the numbers are completely filled.  Remind students to rub the glue on the number and not on the individual tiny pieces of paper.  This is faster and their fingers won't get all sticky.

Encourage students to sing the 911 song whiile they work on this activity.  (My Y5's started singing on their own, without a prompt from me, so I know your kiddos will also enjoy it.) Completed projects make a terrific fall bulletin board.

Click on the link to view/download the 911 Fire Safety Packet.  Thanks for visiting today.  Hope you can stop by tomorrow for more fire safety craftivities.  I'm off to church.  Once again, my early morning has flown by.  Wishing you a blessed day.

"It always seems impossible until it is done." -Nelson Mandela

1-2-3 Come Do Some Fire Safety Activities With Me

In 1920, President Woodrow Wilson issued the first National Fire Prevention Day Proclamation, and since 1922, Fire Prevention Week has been observed on the Sunday through Saturday period in which October 9th falls.

Over the years, I've had two of my students involved in trailer fires, one in which my Y5 was the one who alerted the family and dialed 911, so don't think a fire won't happen to your kiddos.

Prepare them like it will.  In Jose's case that preparation was quite possibly life saving.  I start my Fire Safety Week with all sorts of fiction and non fiction stories. 

If you're looking for a list of appropriate fire safety books for little ones, I've compiled a list of 55 of my all-time favorites. 

So that you can quickly and easily plug in some relevant fire safety into your busy day, here are some simple fire safety craftivities for you to choose from. 

The first two have an "I promise" aspect to them.  A promise is a big deal to a child, so when they make a promise to me, I think they are more committed to following through. 

Promises also show them the importance of fire safety. Signing their promise activities give them extra clout.  Such is the case with the "Stop and Think" hand print craftivity.

On the front is a child's painted white hand print; on the back is our promise pledge: "Stop and think. Give me a high five for fire safety. Don't - don't - don't play with matches, candles or lighters.  I promise  I won't - won't  - won't!  I'm alert so I won't get hurt."  These looked terrific twirling from our hallway ceiling.

My personal favorite is: Hands Off Fire.  This too is a promise craftivity.  The flames of the fire are a child's paper hands.  If you look closely you'll see that they are crinkled like cardboard. 

(I ran them through a crimper roller, that you can buy at any craft store. Well worth the $18, as I use it for that "finishing touch" for lots of projects.)

Using hands for the flames, is not my original idea.  I came across a photo on Pinterest with no link or pattern, so I decided to dream up my own. 

I've also included a Never Ever fire safety song, with matching poster. 

Ever conscious of Common Core State Standards, I tried to throw in some writing activities for older students. 

As you can see by the photo, students complete a writing prompt (I've provided 2 options) and then glue their bonfire to the top. 

I've also included a fire safety - promise poster that all of your students can sign.

Finally, as with all of my themes, I use them as an opportunity to build vocabulary.  F is for Fire covers 24 fire-themed words. 

Some of them begin with the word fire, which is used as an adjective (teachable moment for "describing" words), others are compound words. (Another teachable moment!)

Students rip and tear red, yellow and orange strips of construction paper.  Have children make 3 piles of colors and then rub a glue stick over the letter F,  pressing each piece down. 

My Y5's loved doing rip and tear activities, and I included them because they are a great fine motor skill and really help strengthen finger muscles.  Completed projects make awesome fall bulletin boards too. 

Older students can alphabetize the list of words and write them down.  For that fire-effect, I used a pinking shears to edge the construction paper.  

That's it for today.  I don't want this blog article to get too long, so I hope you can pop back tomorrow, as I have lots more fire safety FREEBIES to share with you.  

I'm off to Art Prize; 1000's of amazing exhibits throughout our downtown area.  Quite the big deal here in Grand Rapids, MI.

"Individually, we are one drop. Together we are an ocean." -Ryunosuke Satoro

12 pages

This is a wonderful craft to help students practice their cutting skills, as the hose is a spiral.  The packet also includes a "Put Out the Fire" song, and song poster. Older students can add a writing prompt to another waterdrop. This craftivity will be free for an entire year (!), after which time it will be up-dated and put in my TpT shop. Click on the link to zip on over to take a look: Put Out the Fire! Fire Safety Craftivity.  For your convenience, I've included a PREVIEW here.