The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) announced the release of its updated Learn Not to Burn® (LNTB) Preschool Program, which was created to address young children’s increased risk to home fire fatalities.
The Learn Not to Burn series has served as a pillar of NFPA educational programs for more than 40 years, reaching children with proven educational strategies that incorporate NFPA’s philosophy of teaching positive, practical fire safety messaging.
The revised preschool curriculum features five lessons, which include new and original content:
Firefighters are community helpers
When you hear a smoke alarm, get outside and stay outside
Practice a fire drill with your family
Stay away from hot things
Tell an adult if you see matches or lighters
All of the program’s behaviors and strategies are guided by research addressing fire and life safety messaging for young children. This includes the use of positively-framed messages, age-appropriate learning activities, and encouragement of family involvement.
NFPA worked closely with an independent early childhood specialist to make sure the program would properly impact and influence students.
“One of our main priorities is to ensure that the Learn Not to Burn Preschool Program and its fire safety messaging are developmentally appropriate for preschoolers,” said Karen Berard-Reed, senior project manager of NFPA’s public education division. “At the same time, we incorporated elements that can help children be successful learners in the grades ahead.”
Berard-Reed notes that while the program targets children ages three to five, it’s also appropriate for the Kindergarten level, with elements that support successful learning up through grades one and two.
The updated Learn Not to Burn Preschool Program integrates literacy, movement, music and dramatic play; each lesson taps into young children’s varied learning styles to reinforce specific safety concepts.
NFPA encourages fire safety educators and teachers to use the Learn Not to Burn Preschool Program as part of their annual curriculum. The complete program can be downloaded online at no cost.
