Teacher resource

Teaching first aid

Q&A

All your questions answered about the Life. Live it. first aid education for children teaching resource.
Q Who can teach this? A The resource is designed to support and encourage teachers and other educators to help pupils learn simple first aid actions. No previous knowledge of first aid is necessary for either teacher or pupil. Q A Q A Q A Q A What if I dont feel confident about teaching first aid? Get familiar with the Teachers area of Life. Live it. It contains a range of materials to help you understand the basics of first aid, so that you can quickly pick up the essentials and deliver key messages to your pupils with confidence. This provides an opportunity for you to learn more about first aid alongside your pupils. You dont need to be an expert in first aid to teach it! Please note that Life. Live it. does not aim to provide information on the full range of first aid techniques (such as resuscitation); instead it covers a smaller number of key actions for dealing with a range of situations. It aims to strike a balance between the kinds of situation children are most likely to face, and very serious situations where their actions could have the most impact. I teach five year olds arent they too young to learn first aid? Red Cross research has shown that even young children can learn that they need to get help in an emergency, and this is a key part of first aid. The Life. Live it. materials and lessons for Key Stage 1 pupils will help them gain an understanding of treating burns and nose bleeds, in addition to keeping safe and getting help. The materials and lessons for Key Stage 2 pupils are more extensive. All the content has been designed in a way that is age relevant. What about child safety? Child safety is paramount. Red Cross materials emphasise that you must put your own safety first. Of course, we promote humanitarian action and hope that people help others in need. But we also recognise the potential dangers of helping and the particular dangers of a child approaching a stranger. Pupils are not encouraged to approach a person they do not know. If in doubt, they should stay clear and call 999. Life. Live it. should be used in the context of individual schools health and safety policies. How much time does the resource need? The resource contains a set of three flexible lesson plans, which take 4060-minutes for a regular class size; these lesson plans will help you make use of the pupil-facing activities and film scenarios. They offer a variety of activities including practical work and roleplays. You will need to look at the lesson plans in advance and then use them in ways that work best for you. You may want to break down the lessons into shorter sessions for younger pupils. To allow for consolidation of learning and to use the various activities effectively, you will probably need around six sessions the programme is ideal for half a term of weekly lessons. Ideally, pupils should also be given time to explore the pupil pages and ask questions this can form part of a homework activity if there is not enough time in class.

Life. Live it.

First aid education for children

The British Red Cross should be credited wherever this content is used and it should only be used for education purposes. British Red Cross Life. Live it. redcross.org.uk/teachchildrenfirstaid

Teacher resource

Teaching first aid

> Help save lives > Stay safe

Q&A

Q Do I need to do all three themes and follow them in order? A Ideally yes: you and your pupils should work through the resources three themes in order, as each section follows on from the previous one. The three themes are:

> Emergency action If pupils have done lessons Stay safe and Help save lives, the third lesson Emergency action will link all their learning together. If you do not have time to teach all three, they have been designed to work as standalone themes too. Visit the What is first aid? section (in the pupil area) for materials that can be used more flexibly. Included in this section is an information sheet for pupils called What you need to know; this provides a good summary of key information. What about special needs pupils? Life. Live it. caters for pupils of all abilities and learning styles. The emphasis of the resource is on learning first aid through a variety of approaches: video, interactive activities, discussion, quizzes, drama, practical activities, drawing and more. There are worksheets at two levels for each theme and writing activities are kept to a minimum. Suggestions for differentiation are also provided in the lesson plans. First aid has been shown to be an excellent way to develop a variety of skills in children with special learning, behaviour or physical needs. And due to its practical nature, it can be taught to children with English as an additional language.

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Q Is the website accessible? A Yes: it is important to us that our site is as accessible as possible to all users. This site is accessible to W3 AA standard; please see the following website for more information: www.w3.org/WAI/WCAG1AA-Conformance. Listed below are some additional preferences that may help users of the site. Text and background colours

> Please note that you will not be able to change the text or background within the quizzes or interactive activities. However, you can download and print versions of the three quizzes. Interactive activities There are two drag and drop interactive activities: Treat me and 999 emergency. They can be completed using a keyboard by following these instructions:

> In most browsers you are able to change the style or font of the text on the screen. This is also usually in the Page or Options menu.

> You may find it helpful to change the text size of the site. You can do this within your internet browser usually under the Options or Page menu.

> Use the Tab key to move across the buttons on the page. The buttons will have a yellow outline when you tab across them.

Life. Live it.

First aid education for children

The British Red Cross should be credited wherever this content is used and it should only be used for education purposes. British Red Cross Life. Live it. redcross.org.uk/teachchildrenfirstaid

Teacher resource

Teaching first aid

> Press Enter to enter the highlighted button. Q A

Q&A

> Press and hold down Shift, and letters A, B, C and D will appear on top of the pictures. > Type in a letter and then a number to match them together on the right of the page. How can I assess learning? As well as the variety of worksheets and interactive activities available, the resource also includes three online multiple-choice quizzes one for each of the three main themes. They will help you to assess knowledge and understanding of first aid, and will also measure pupils confidence in using first aid and their willingness to act. Additionally, there are opportunities to use peer assessment with older pupils.

Q Will I be expected to give practical demonstrations of first aid? A Not unless you want to; otherwise there are videos, information sheets and other materials that demonstrate very clearly how first aid should be given for a range of situations. Q A If you would like more support around practical demonstrations, Red Cross trainers can deliver and support practical skills training for schools in many areas. Please contact your local branch; you can find it on our website: redcross.org.uk/where-we-work/in-the-UK. What about pupils who are afraid of blood? Giving first aid is not all about dealing with gore or broken bones. In Life. Live it., the emphasis is on teaching children first how to stay safe when helping others, then how to get help and call 999 if there is an emergency. Although in some scenarios blood is inevitably present, the videos and learning materials carefully avoid graphic depictions of serious injuries.

Q What kind of first aid situations are covered by the resource? A In addition to the themes of keeping safe and getting help, Life. Live it. covers: > severe bleeds, choking, checking for breathing, the recovery position, broken bones, asthma attacks and allergic reactions (suggested for age 7+). Q A It does not cover dealing with: a person who is not breathing, heart attacks, head injuries, strokes, consuming harmful substances, seizures or diabetic emergencies (although pupils are taught how to call 999 if they come across emergency situations and to follow the instructions of the operator). These are all topics covered in the next stage of the Life. Live it. materials: the Life. Live it. first aid education for young people resource (redcross.org.uk/lifeliveitresource). Do I need a first aid kit and other material to teach this? No, you dont need a first aid kit to teach (or give) first aid. Life. Live it. does not require any special materials or first aid training equipment either. It uses the minimum basic classroom materials and requires little organisation time. An interactive whiteboard or projector and whiteboard with internet access are the only essential requirements. > emotions, burns and nosebleeds (all ages)

Life. Live it.

First aid education for children

The British Red Cross should be credited wherever this content is used and it should only be used for education purposes. British Red Cross Life. Live it. redcross.org.uk/teachchildrenfirstaid

Teacher resource

Teaching first aid

Q A Q A

Q&A

Isnt first aid more complicated than this? It should not be. To enable people to learn, remember and be confident to take action, first aid messages need to be simple, clear and memorable. This resource includes easy directions and supporting illustrations to show the most important things people need to do. Simple actions can make a big difference. Can I copy the materials? (i.e. information sheets, lesson plans and worksheets) Yes, teachers and other educators are free to use, copy and circulate these materials for education purposes. Lesson plans and worksheets are provided in an alterable format for maximum flexibility. The British Red Cross should be credited wherever content is used and it should only be used for education purposes.

Q What are the technical requirements for using this resource? To enhance your experience of using this resource, we recommend the following: > Browser: Firefox 3, Safari 3, Internet Explorer 7.0 and above or Google Chrome > Screen resolution: 1024x768

> Adobe Acrobat Reader latest version (for downloading PDF information sheets, lesson plans and badges) Q A > Microsoft Office 2003 and above (for downloading a PowerPoint awards certificate) If you do not have the latest versions of Adobe Flash Player or Acrobat Reader, you can download them for free from the Adobe website: adobe.com. We recommend you use an interactive whiteboard so that you can play the interactive activities with and show the films to a whole class (see lesson plans for more information). However, these activities will also work on individual computers for small-group work and/or homework activities. A projector and regular whiteboard are also suitable to show the films and interactive activities. Where did the Red Cross emblem come from? The red cross on a white background is an internationally recognised sign of protection under international law. It is primarily used by armed forces medical services. This emblem was adopted in the original Geneva Convention in Switzerland of 1864 and is a reversal of the Swiss flag which has a white cross on a red background. The red cross has no religious meaning. In some Muslim countries a red crescent is used. More information on the emblem can be found at: redcross.org.uk/About-us/Who-we-are/The-international-Movement/The-emblem.

> Adobe Flash Player latest version (to play the interactive activities and videos)

> Broadband connection: 512K

Q What is the first aid symbol? A The official European symbol for first aid is the white cross on a green background, shown beside the title of the resource on each page of the website.

Life. Live it.

First aid education for children

The British Red Cross should be credited wherever this content is used and it should only be used for education purposes. British Red Cross Life. Live it. redcross.org.uk/teachchildrenfirstaid