Dealing with Disasters™ - Products

School Training Cards

Purpose: Train your school staff to respond to any disaster
Time to Prepare: 10 minutes.
Time to Train Staff: 15 minutes
Contents:
• 7 Instruction Cards
• 42 Disaster Cards
• 24 Incident Command System Positions (95 Cards)

• School Training System:
  $179 per deck for up to 10 decks.
  With the added bonus of a fast-start training CD (a $50 value) and two hours of telephone consultation (a $250 value) with every deck.
  

  

• Quantity Discount:
  $159 per deck for 11 or more decks
  With the added bonus of a fast-start training CD (a $50 value) and two hours of telephone consultation (a $250 value) with every deck.
  

  

Background

In the past, disaster preparedness for schools meant focusing on fires, floods and severe weather. Today, new kinds of disasters have made the headlines, including, armed intruders, bomb threats, explosions and toxic chemical hazards. In response, the federal government has inacted, by Presidential mandate, the National Incident Management System (NIMS) that requires all schools to learn and practice the Incident Command System (ICS). The Dealing with Disasters Training Deck fullfills that requirement.

Incident Command System Position Cards

Learn the Incident
Command System (ICS)

The ICS Position Cards each reflect roles that your staff and students might play in a disaster scenario. The ICS is the preeminent disaster management system that is being used by the US government and throughout the world to define roles and protocols in disaster response. By training your staff to assume the ICS roles, which are shown on the ICS Position Cards in this deck, you will give your school the best chance of success when disaster strikes.

ICS Roles

Command Team Cards

Operations Team Cards

Planning Team Cards

Logistics Team Cards

Finance Team Cards

Volunteers/Staff Cards

Why Learn ICS?

Learning the Incident Command System protocols will make it possible for your school to coordinate with outside agencies during a disaster. You will need ICS to escalate issues, make requests for help, report findings and control the environment before, during and after an emergency. Effective coordination, communication and control are the difference between success and failure in disaster response. Using ICS may qualify your school for state and federal funding before and after disasters.

Disaster Scenario Cards

Train Staff on ICS Roles During Any Disaster

The Disaster Cards represent over three dozen potential disaster scenarios that are facing schools today.

You can download complete details on the disasters at: http://www.dealingwithdisasters.com/resources_down.htm.

The 15-minute discussion begins after the leader selects one Disaster Card and assigns all applicable Position Cards to staff members, so that they can test their skills in various ICS positions. Most schools will assign multiple cards to each staff member.

How To Play: Step One

Assign Cards
1. Give the black-bordered Incident Commander ICS Position Card to the person who will lead the training exercise and facilitate discussion.
2. Give the blue-bordered Documentation card to the person who will also be the scribe to record the lessons learned and next action steps to take after the exercise
3. Assign one or more relevant ICS Position Cards to each staff member and have them silently read about their ICS position. Note that ICS Position Cards are color coded into teams.
4. Select and read one Disaster Card scenario to the group.

How To Play: Step Two

Elicit Team Responses
5. Begin by asking each member of the Command Team (black), what they would do in their ICS Disaster role(s).
For example, if the checklist says check utilities, the staff member would tell the group where they would check utilities, under what condition they would turn off the utilities and with what tool. They may ask for assistance, be given additional direction, or stimulate further group discussion.
6. Ask the same of the members of the remaining teams in this order:
• The Operations Team (red)
• The Planning Team (blue)
• The Logistics Team (yellow)
• The Finance Team (green)
• The Volunteers/Staff team (orange)

How To Play: Step Three

Learn Valuable Lessons And Take Action Now, Before Disaster Strikes.
7. Now read the checklist on the back of the Disaster Card, which gives some actions that should have been mentioned during the discussion. You can use this Action Plan Template to practice making response plans during actual disasters.
8. Use this Scribe Template, have the scribe record any lessons learned or action items needing to be done for the school to be prepared for the actual disaster.
9. You can download specific details on each of the disasters here.
10. At the next staff meeting, follow up on the scribe's action items and train on a new disaster.

In an Actual Emergency

In an actual emergency, the site administrator can pass out the ICS Position Cards to guide staff members who are responding to the disaster. The Position Cards may be worn on lanyards or pinned on clothing as ID badges to identify specific roles assigned during an actual emergency. The checklists on the back of the cards will guide staff in their response to the emergency. Be sure to pass on the Position Card to the to next person taking over the role or responsibility.