Sep
17
Posted by Sarah Levin-Lederer on September 17th, 2019
Posted in: Blog, Public Health
Tags: community engagement, Emergency Preparedness (EPP), Health Literacy, public safety
September is National Preparedness Month and there’s still time to save for an emergency, make and practice your plan, and get involved in community preparedness.
This year, Week Three of Preparedness Month (September 15-21) is focused on Youth Preparedness. Kids can be great ambassadors for preparedness and involving them in the planning process can improve their resilience during and after an emergency.
FEMA, the Red Cross, the Department of Education and Ready.gov supports disaster planning for and with youth through the Youth Preparedness National Strategy. This strategy encourages including and engaging youth in preparedness through planning and programming to build youth resiliency and preparedness leaders.
Here are some more resources designed to teach kids about preparedness:
It’s also important to help kids learn about how to evaluate information online for accuracy and trustworthiness. Teach kids critical thinking strategies for finding and using preparedness information with these resources:
And always make sure you’re following trusted sources on social media to avoid scams and hoaxes before, during and after emergencies. On twitter, follow @nnlmner, @fema, @femaregion1 (New England), @nws (and your local NWS weather station), local news outlets, and local and state government accounts.
To learn more about trusted, online emergency preparedness resources, view the recording of the webinar Are You Ready? Essential Disaster Health Information Resources for Keeping Your Loved Ones Safe taught on August 28, 2019.