Napo’s Best Signs for Safety: Lesson Two – Mandatory/Rescue signs
Teacher guidance:
It is never too early to introduce children to the basic safety concepts that for adults come under the umbrella of Occupational Safety and Health (OSH).
Napo is a charming character who can help children think, understand and act on safety issues. To find out more about Napo, click here: Who is Napo There is a wide range of Napo films, so please feel free to explore them and use in your own classes.
Some of the basic safety concepts in this lesson plan can link to curriculum already being taught. This resource presents a range of great ideas which you can use to help integrate these safety concepts into your lessons. This spe- cific project can stand alone as a lesson or be part of a wider project. It links to other subjects, as shown, but its main purpose is to use the engaging Napo films to teach children about the different types of safety signs, what they mean and how they help us keep safe from harm.
We have also provided a full lesson plan as an example of how these ideas might be used. The first section gives an overview of the activities, objectives and resources required for the lesson. It is followed by a more detailed example of a three-part lesson plan with an idea for extending the learning.
If you need more information on basic safety and health topics raised in this project, you can find it in the corre- sponding helpsheet for this lesson plan in the third section.
Learning Objectives
To raise awareness of a range of warning signs and know why they are important
To evaluate the way signs convey their meaning
To raise awareness of using signs to protect yourself
Groups evaluate each other’s performance and test each other’s knowledge of what each sign shape means
Masks can be used to make a classroom display.
Activity Overview - See lesson plan for further detail
40/45 minutes
Watch the Napo film clip provided with this lesson: Safety Signs Mandatory Rescue
Best Signs Story: Introduction; Blue Circle (Mandatory signs); Hearing protection must be worn; Green square (Rescue Signs); Emergency escape sign.
Possible activities:
Discuss each scene, what is happen- ing and why. List some reasons as to why people didn’t take notice of signs.
Show a choice of signs from the full set of signs included in the EU Direc- tive (see Helpsheet). Discuss the basic rules of colours and shapes of safety signs.
Draw an example of each sign.
Explain the purpose/usefulness of signs and their different meanings.
In teams take one shape sign – Round and Square – that conveys mandatory instructions.
Make the signs into masks that can be fixed onto sticks and held up in front of the face.
Think about how the signs may speak or act to make sure they are noticed e.g. gentle voice and body language for information, strong loud authori- tative voice and body language for mandatory.
Discuss typical risks we meet in everyday life and how they are linked to signs.
These can be practiced and modelled by the teacher in advance of group work if necessary.
Test the whole class on their knowl- edge of what signs say and mean and why they are important through group plenary.
Extension work can research other signs, including some simple road signs, and create a sign for the school.
Links to subjects/curriculum
Personal, social and health education
Rules for and ways of keeping safe, as well as about people who can help them stay safe
To recognise how their behaviour affects other people
Maths
Shape recognition
Science
To recognise warning signs and take notice of them
Citizenship/Education for civil life
To recognise hazards, assess consequent risks and risk control
Foreign/native language
Inventing simple sentences when explaining the signals
Road Safety
To recognise warning signs and take notice of them
Detailed Lesson plan
Napo’s Best Signs for Safety
This film provides a basic introduction to health and safety signs and symbols found in the workplace. It provides a useful guide for new employees and a valuable refresher for other workers. Different workplace situations are shown where safety signs are important. This film is suitable for all sectors and all levels of employees but especially for young people in training or work experience. It is designed to inform the audience about safety signs at work, to promote the importance of respecting the signs, and to learn and identify the meaning of the signs through their form and the colour.
Watch the video
