The time to plan is now. If you do not have a crisis plan for your school in place, develop one. If you do have a plan in place, review, update and practice that plan regularly.
Schools and school districts need to be ready to handle crises, large and small, to keep children and staff out of harm's way and ready to learn and teach. Refer to these resources to begin or continue your planning efforts. In addition to planning guidelines, you'll find curriculum resources designed to bring the preparedness message to your students.
Involving staff, parents and students reminds us that preparedness is a team sport.
Planning and preparedness resources
Websites
- www.ed.gov(Link is external) – U.S. Department of Education
- www.ready.gov(Link is external) – Ready.gov
- www.cdc.gov(Link is external) – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- www.redcross.org (Link is external)– American Red Cross
- www.rems.ed.gov(Link is external) – Readiness and Emergency Management for Schools (REMS)
Documents
- Guide for Developing High-Quality School Emergency Operations Plans(Link is external) - REMS
- Helping Children Cope in Unsettling Times(Link is external)
Curriculum and classroom aids
- Red Cross Youth(Link is external) – American Red Cross
- Ready Kids(Link is external) – Ready.gov
- Disaster Preparedness Coloring Book(Link is external) – FEMA
- Earthquakes for Kids (Link is external)– United States Geological Survey (USGS)
- Beat the Quake(Link is external) – Earthquake Country Alliance