Schools fulfill many roles: they are places of joyful learning, provide tangible resources for families, and teach critical life skills. As children grow and develop, it is important that they are equipped with basic safety skills as they encounter a variety of new situations. Simple sorting activities can target anything from playground safety to digital citizenship and can be easily incorporated into common classroom themes like back-to-school, community helpers, and friendship. Check out this list of 10 simple activities for building safety skills in elementary classrooms!
1. Safe to Touch
Make young students aware of potential hazards through this safe-to-touch sorting activity. Students place items that are safe or unsafe to touch on the correct side of a T-chart. This is a fantastic follow-up task when a real scenario presents itself and students need a quick review!
Learn More: Twinkl
2. “Safe” and” Not Safe” Labeling
Help children identify safe and unsafe items using these labels. Walk through your home or classroom with your children and place labels on appropriate items. If children are pre-readers, reinforce the concept of “red means stop, green means go” to remind them of safe choices.
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3. Safe and Unsafe With Photos
This sorting activity covers a wide range of safe and unsafe behaviors. Children will use real picture cards to consider different scenarios and decide if they show a safe situation or an unsafe situation. This resource also includes pre-made digital activities. Some pictures have less obvious answers to inspire thoughtful group discussion!
Learn More: The Deane’s List TPT
4. Bus Safety
If your class struggles with bus etiquette, try this fantastic resource! Sorting cards present positive behaviors and unsafe behaviors children can exhibit while riding the school bus. Use this as a whole group lesson at the beginning of the school year and whenever bus rules appear to be forgotten.
Learn More: Teach With Me
5. Helpful/Unhelpful
This digital sorting activity frames the concepts of safe and unsafe behaviors as helpful and unhelpful behaviors. Children will think through certain behaviors at school and sort them into the proper column. This is a great opportunity to discuss replacement behaviors for unsafe activities!
Learn More: Creating the Calm TPT
6. Fire Safety
Explore the concept of fire safety with this fun sorting activity for your pocket chart. Children each get a firefighter with two expressions, which they show to denote safe and unsafe behaviors as the teacher reads safety scenarios aloud. Once the group decides, the teacher will place the correct answer on the chart.
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7. Hot and Not Hot
Help children determine items that are safe and unsafe to touch during your fire safety unit. Children sort picture cards of objects that can be hot or not hot to help prevent burn injuries. Developing these positive behaviors at school helps to promote student safety at home!
Learn More: One Sharp Bunch
8. Safer Strangers
Encourage children to look out for community helpers in this “safer strangers” sorting activity. Children will learn to identify the correct people to find and avoid the potential dangers of talking to unsafe people. Use this game as part of your life skills safety unit or community helpers theme!
Learn More: Twinkl
9. Digital Safety
Use this resource to help children consider potential online dangers and to promote cyber safety during your digital citizenship lessons. Read the scenarios aloud and decide if each situation describes safe or unsafe behaviors online. Hang the completed chart up for children to reference as they work on school computers!
Learn More: Pinterest
10. Safe and Unsafe Secrets
This two-version printable and digital sorting activity covers many tough concepts, including cyber safety, stranger danger, and more through the idea of safe and unsafe secrets. Children will also learn which situations for children warrant reporting to a grown-up and which are okay to handle alone.
Learn More: Music City Counselor TPT
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