Health and Senior Services Provides Parents and Teachers with Resources to Educate Children about Emergency Preparedness

 Health and Senior Services Provides Parents and Teachers with Resources to Educate Children about Emergency Preparedness

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services is releasing a set of tools and resources to help parents and teachers educate children about emergencies and how they can help their families better prepare. These materials are part of the department’s Ready in 3 emergency preparedness program. The Ready in 3 initiative reminds Missourians what they can do to prepare for all types of emergencies.

Nearly 670,000 children are enrolled in kindergarten through eighth grade in schools across the state. “As we encourage families to prepare for emergencies, school-aged children are a vital link to assisting parents and the rest of their family in taking the steps to prepare,” said Jane Drummond, Director of the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services. “We hope the Ready in 3 resources available to Missouri schools help facilitate discussions about this important subject and encourage all families to get an emergency supply kit, make a family emergency plan and be informed about the different emergencies that can happen.”

“More than 3,000 Missouri schools are receiving a package of Ready in 3 resources. Schools are being asked to talk to students about the importance of planning before an emergency strikes and share these tools with them to take home and help their families prepare,” Drummond added.

The Ready in 3 resources available to Missouri schools include lesson plans that meet national standards for science, videos, age-appropriate games and puzzles as well as step-by-step instructional booklets and checklists on what families can do to better prepare for emergencies. In addition, the Ready in 3 web site, www.dhss.mo.gov/Ready_in_3, is full of interactive games for children and resources for parents and teachers on emergency preparedness. The Ready in 3 materials provide a vehicle for teachers and parents to explain important emergency preparedness information to children.

Parents, teachers and school administrators are encouraged to order Ready in 3 tools on-line at www.dhss.mo.gov/Ready_in_3/ or by calling the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services at 573-526-4768.