Broward County Partners with Sun-Sentinel News in Education To Produce Hurricane Preparedness Curriculum for Schools
Broward County Board of County Commissioners has partnered with Sun-Sentinel News in Education (NIE) to produce a hurricane preparedness curriculum for Broward County students in grades 5-12. The curriculum in "Hurricane Ready. Set. Safe." is school board-approved and benchmarked to the Florida Sunshine State Standards.
The program will provide 160,000 students with a full-color, tabloid-sized student workbook containing important hurricane preparedness information and activities for students and parents. The workbooks will be distributed to teachers this month. Hurricane season begins June 1 and continues through November.
Curriculum content promotes planning and preparedness for Broward County families, to ensure they are ready, set and safe during a storm. Content for the workbook was developed by the Sun-Sentinel NIE team, the Broward County Public Communications Office and the Deerfield Beach Disaster Survival House. The Disaster Survival House is home to Hurricane Warning!, a non-profit, 501(c)(3) education program that teaches hurricane and disaster mitigation, safety and preparedness to children, families, individuals, seniors, students, businesses and trade personnel.
The curriculum incorporates scientific information about hurricanes and how they are formed, information on scientific occupations related to weather and emergency management, planning and preparedness checklists, evacuation and shelter information, and safety tips for pets and the elderly. Also featured is a guided "tour" of the Disaster Survival House, which features a hurricane laboratory, examples of window protection and wind tunnel demonstrations, hurricane tracking, flooding, storm surge, lightning, generator safety, safe room and disaster preparedness planning.
Students and their parents are also encouraged to attend Broward County's Hurricane Preparedness Expo, Saturday, June 2 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Broward County Emergency Operations Center (EOC), 201 NW 84th Ave. in Plantation. The Expo will feature exhibits and demonstrations by County agencies and other emergency response partners, tours of the EOC and Emergency Mobile Command Vehicle, prizes and giveaways.
For more information on hurricane preparedness, call 954-831-4000, or visit www.broward.org/hurricane. For more information on the Disaster Survival House, call 954-429-0830.
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