Fire Safety week 4 - Safety Education series

Welcome to this week's safety class!

Sept. 25, 2014

Safety Education

Fire Safety

It's time to practice our fire escape plan. 

You can use your "class time" today to review or use it to practice your plan. If you have a stop watch, (a timer on your cell phone works too!) you can record the time it takes everyone to reach the meeting place. Then you'll have an incentive to do better the next time you practice.

Our family will be reviewing today, with a "warning" to the kids that at an unexpected time the fire alarm will sound and they'll be expected to put our plan into action.

In our house, a designated someone will sound the alarm by using a broom handle to push the smoke detector test button. When our alarm sounds, we will also yell where the "fire" is in the house...such as, "fire, fire in the hallway," or "fire, fire in the kitchen, get out!"

Depending on the age of your children, you could also use chairs or boxes to show which exits are blocked because of fire. Such as a chair outside a bedroom door, or in front of your back door, so the children know they need to use an alternative exit.

If this is your first time practicing your escape plan, take it easy and just try to run through it to get everyone to the meeting place. If total chaos breaks out during the drill you'll definitely have something to talk about at the dinner table tonight! 

Remember, this is a learning experience for ALL involved. As we practice these drills again and again, we will improve and perfect our plans. Communication is key! Talk about it, let all involved make suggestions for improvement during the next drill. 

 

via Fire Safety Council

I hope your enjoying our safety classes, 

that they are in some way helpful to you.  

I'll be sure to let you know how our family handled this week's fire drill. 

Next week we'll talk about basic first aid.

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Do you practice fire drills with your family?

I would love to hear 

about your experiences!

Fire safety  week 1 

Fire safety  week 2

Fire safety  week 3

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What to do with Extra Large Turnips - dehydrating turnips

Turnips are certainly a welcome crop in my garden!

However, there are always a few over-achievers in the bunch!

While I prefer the small to medium size turnips for their more mild flavor in many of my recipes, I certainly do not let the larger (less tender) ones go to waste! 

I dehydrate my extra large turnips to use in my crockpot soups & stews as they add a nice robust flavor!

If we have a plentiful harvest, I'll store a reasonable amount of fresh turnips for our family and dehydrate the rest. 

The dried turnip chips can be eaten as a snack (like potato chips) or crushed to be used in sauces, dips, soups, etc.

Drying turnips.

1. Wash, cut off the tops & root and peel as you would a potato. 

2.  Slice, as thin as you can.

I used this mandolin slicer we found @ Walmart for $10.

Mainstays multi produce slicer

3.  Blanch your slices in boiling water for 3 minutes, then plunge into icy cold water to stop the cooking process.         

4.  Spread out turnip slices & towel dry.

5.  The slices are now ready to be dehydrated using your preferred method.

I use 2 fan-less Ronco dehydrators.

We purchased one 20 years ago & 

another at a yard sale for $3. this past spring.

6.  Store in an airtight container.

As a fun option, try sprinkling your favorite spices on the turnips slices before starting the drying process! I use cayenne pepper.

Do you grow turnips in your garden?

How do you keep them over the winter?

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Fire Safety week 3 - Safety Education series

Welcome to our homeschool safety class this week!

Sept. 18, 2014

Safety Education

Fire Safety 

We'll continue concentrating on fire safety for the month of September. Today we'll discuss creating a fire safety kit and next week we will put our entire fire escape plan to the test!

1. Apart from smoke detectors and fire extinguishers in the home, each room should have a "fire safety kit"!

start with these basics to make your own...

whistle, flashlight, fire safety ladder (if needed), fire extinguisher, duct tape.

OR 

search online for "Fire Safety Kits" to purchase a pre-made one.

2. Ask students what additional items they think they might need in the kits. Do an online search for fire safe masks, goggles and fire extinguishers.

3. Take note of different fire extinguishers and their class ratings. (A, B, C & K) Discuss which ones would be most beneficial in each room of your home.

4. Let your students know they will be testing their fire escape plan next week.  Discuss any questions or concerns they may have. 

5. Table talk; talk about all that they have learned today.

coldfire.biz

Watch this Cold Fire fire extinguisher video!

Mom notes:

If you have house pets, you may want to add that to your discussion this week. 

Also, I purposefully did not add any points about learning how to dial/call 911. When discussing a fire escape plan with my children, I want their focus to be on getting out and staying out! (We'll cover calling 911 another time.)

Thanks for joining us for safety class,

see you next week!

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Fire Safety week 1

Fire Safety week 2

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Organizing Life - Brain Dumping!

Like my computer browser, at times, my 
brain can have too many tabs open!

There are so many things I want to learn, 
books and articles I want to read, sites I 
want to check out, crafts I want to make, 
people I want to contact, recipes I want to 
try, the list goes on and on. 

I'm a visual person, so trying to keep it all
in my head just doesn't work.

So...I use this little system I like to call
Brain Dumping!

brain dumping with my calendar and one of the kids old school notebooks.

I use my calendar & a notebook.
yep, it's quite old-school but it works for me.

It all goes down on paper, no more
cluttered thoughts. When something
comes to mind, I jot it down. I also sketch
ideas in my notebooks along with some
doodles to highlight certain entries.

I would say brain dumping is one of my
main keys to enjoying a simplified life! 

How do you empty your brain?

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Also, be sure to follow me on Pinterest 

where I keep all my online finds!

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Safety Education series - The Home Schooling Matters 0911

Welcome to safety class!

In Pennsylvania, homeschoolers are required 

to provide "...safety education, including regular 

and continuous instructions in the dangers and 

prevention of fires..." each year.

Read my full class intro here.

So, call it Safety Education or maybe, if your not a homeschooler, Emergency Preparedness, we will have class every Thursday over the next several weeks. 

I'll be posting what I will personally 

be doing in our homeschool!

Sept 11, 2014

Safety Education

Walking Through our Fire Escape Plan

1. Last week we talked about having a fire escape plan, this week we will be reviewing our plan.

2. Looking at your map from last week, discuss the exits depicted on your drawing. Depending on your childs age, is it possible to actually escape through the windows, can they open the windows themselves, is there a fire safety ladder for each window that's needed, does each child know where the ladders are stored?  

This will possibly be an eye-opener for parents (and boys who think they can "just jump")!

3. After making your rounds through the house, discuss some basic fire safety rules if fire prevents you from escaping.

* use blankets, towels, duct tape to seal the door cracks & air vents to keep smoke from coming in.

* open your windows at the top & bottom for fresh air to circulate.

* call for help by using a whistle to alert neighbors.

* wave a light-colored cloth or flashlight out the window to let someone know where you're located.

* stay close to the floor to avoid the smoke

* DO NOT hide!

4. Table Talk! discussion at the dinner table benefits all!

fire escape ladder

Mom notes:

With today's lesson we're seeing how much our children actually know when it comes to fire escape planning. No assumptions.

My eyes were opened when after making sure the kids could open each window, then realizing they could not REACH one of the windows without a stool, which was not normally kept in the room.

The boys eyes were opened when they thought they could "just jump" from their first floor bedroom window but after letting them try it, under Daddy's supervision, they were left hanging a little higher than what they wanted to jump!  

It was a great lesson for all of us!

You should be able to find fire escape ladders at your local hardware stores, like Lowe's & Home Depot!

Thanks for joining us for safety class, 

see you next week!

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DIY Cake Plate - some assembly required

I've been wanting to create a pretty 

pedestal cake plate for the upcoming 

holidays for some time now. So at the 

beginning of yard sale season, it was on my list.

I found a lovely glass candle holder, it was 

a bit bigger and heavier than the regular 

ones I normally see, it was two dollars at a 

tag sale, perfect! 

DIY cake plate - some assembly required

With a little glue and a glass plate found at 

Goodwill, I was able to create this pretty piece!

It sparkles!

DIY cake plate

This is such an easy DIY, I encourage you 

to hunt down some glass pieces of your 

own and make one. 

Don't need another cake plate?  

Then stay tuned, I have a fun & unique way 

to use a pedestal plate as a really cute gift idea!

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Safety Education series - The Home Schooling Matters

Welcome to our first safety class!

In Pennsylvania, homeschoolers are required to provide "...safety education, including regular and continuous instructions in the dangers and prevention of fires..." each year.

Throughout our 20+ years of schooling, we have used many different resources to teach safety education from free books at the library to classes offered at our local community college. 

This subject, although required, is often an after thought for many parents as they focus more on the 'regular' subjects of English, math, history & science, however, safety will never be a subject we graduate from...it will benefit us and our families for the rest of our lives.

So, call it Safety Education or maybe, if your not a homeschooler, Emergency Preparedness, we will have class every Thursday over the next several weeks. 

I'll be posting what I will personally 

be doing in our homeschool!

Sept 4, 2014

Safety Education

Create a Fire Escape Plan.

1. Have students draw a map of your home, let them detail as much or as little as they like. Do include all doors & windows.

2. Have students physically stand in each room and think about how they would escape. Using a red marker/pencil, draw arrows on your map showing two ways out.

3. Designate a meeting place outside your home and mark it on your map too.

4. Table talk: this is a great subject to bring up at the dinner table!  

Mom notes: 

Depending on your child's age, you could find some fire safety books at the library to read to your child before or after creating your fire escape plan.

Although I encourage you to have your students draw their own map, no matter their age, here's an additional resource for digitally creating an escape plan with Sparky the Fire Dog! 

Thanks for joining us for safety class, see you next week!

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fire escape plan

Does your family have a 

fire escape plan?

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