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FIREFIGHTERS ON THE JOB (Social Studies/Art/Prewriting)
Try the activities below with your group
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Using picture books and photographs, talk with your children about firefighters at work. Encourage them to tell what they know about a firefighter’s job. |
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Invite a firefighter to come in and talk about his or her work, bringing such on-the-job items as a hat, jacket, boots, and gloves for the children to examine. Beforehand, make a list of questions the children would like to ask the firefighter when he or she visits. |
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Ask the firefighter to talk about safety rules that are appropriate for your children’s age group: Don’t play with matches or lighters; Keep away from light cords and sockets; and so forth. |
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Follow up by having the children draw pictures and dictate sentences for you to write on their papers thanking the firefighter for his or her visit. Compile the papers and send them to the firefighter. |
FIREPUP FUN (Art/Music)
Firepup is the National Fire Safety Council’s Dalmatian dog character that is used to teach children about fire safety. Talk with your children about Firepup and display a picture of him. (For online information and pictures, search the Web for <Firepup>. Or check with your local fire department for Firepup materials.) Then try the following activities.
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Give your children large white-paper cutouts of a Dalmatian. Set out washable black inkpads and invite the children to stamp black fingerprint “spots” all over their dog cutouts. |
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October 1 is Firepup’s birthday. Let the children sing Happy Birthday to Firepup and draw pictures of birthday presents they would like to give him. |
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FLAMING CREATIONS (Art)
Invite your children to try one or both of the activities below to make fiery designs.
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Blow Painting: For each child, place drops of red and yellow paint at random on white paper. Let the child use a straw to blow the paint around the paper and watch as the red and yellow colors blend to make orange. |
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Marble Painting: Cut white paper to fit in a shallow container. For each child, place a paper in the container and add a spoonful each of red and yellow paint. Then have the child roll one or two marbles over the paint to make designs.
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WHERE’S THE FIRE? (Prewriting)
On white paper, draw a simple picture of a fire truck in a left-hand corner and a picture of a burning house in the opposite right-hand corner. Draw a winding road leading from the fire truck to the house. Make photocopies of the paper for your children. Then have them use a crayon or a marker to draw a line inside the road showing how the fire truck would travel to the burning house to put out the fire. Let them add details to their papers when they have finished, if they wish. |
FIREFIGHTER PLAY CENTER (Dramatic Play)
Try the suggestions below when setting up a play center for your young “firefighters.” Add your own ideas, too.
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Help the children use a cardboard carton to make a fire engine. |
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Provide child-size clothing and gear, such as firefighter hats, jackets, gloves, boots, hoses, and flashlights. |
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If available, provide a sturdy indoor gym for climbing to rescue stuffed toys from “burning buildings.” |
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Set out firefighter hand puppets for the children to use when talking about fighting fires on the job. |
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FIRE SAFETY MOVES (Movement)
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With your children, practice what to do in case your clothes ever catch on fire: Stop, Drop, and Roll. |
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Have the children practice running from a “burning building” to a safe place and calling 9-1-1 (on a disconnected phone) to report a fire. |
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Conduct fire drills with the children to practice two safe ways of exiting your building. |
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DOWN AT THE FIREHOUSE
Tune: “Down at the Station”
Down at the firehouse
Early in the morning,
Hear the fire alarm bell
Ringing high and low.
See the firefighters
Jump into the fire truck.
Wooo! Wooo! Wooo! Wooo!
Off they go!
Liz Ryerson
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JIGGLY FLAME SNACKS (Food Presentation)
Make red and yellow gelatin in separate shallow containers. When the gelatin is set, cut it into small cubes. Then give your children clear-plastic cups and let them spoon the red and yellow cubes inside to make fiery colored treats. |
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