Fear of Flood!

Act I

Tom: (moving about frantically) Oh dear--oh me, oh my--It's just a matter of minutes, er days, er weeks until the flood season. (looks at the narrator) And do you know what that means? (trembles) That means (trembles more) I have to (whispers) leave my home again. I can't do it. It will be filled with water. I got sick last time. All my toys were lost! What if I get swept away? What then? What then, huh? Oh dear, oh me, oh my, I just can't do it!

Narrator: (looks at the class) Do you think we should try to help Tom? (after positive response) Let's go make a plan to deal with flooding. (Narrator – holds up a piece of paper)

Tom: (looks at the paper thoroughly) What is this thing? It doesn’t look like it’ll be good for anything…

Narrator: It's a little plan Tom. It will help you be prepared and you can stop being scared because you will know what to do and can act on it

Tom: (trembles) I still don’t like floods….

Narrator: We are going to use plan to show you what you can do to prepare. The more you prepare, the less likely it will be that flooding will affect you.

Tom: Yeah, right…

Narrator: One of the reasons a lot of kids (looks at Tom) and puppets are so worried about floods is because they don't know what to expect. You just don't know what might happen. (Tom nods) Well guess what, there might be other kids who feel the same way.

Tom: Really sir?

Narrator: Really Tom--it's true. A lot of those kids are just as frightened as you.

Tom: Okay, okay go on.

Narrator: Sometimes kids get scared because they are might be evacuated away from home. Sometimes a long, long way from home. They are afraid something might happen to them and no one will know.

Tom: Yeah, like being away from my family.

Narrator: Tom—Lets just see what we can do to help be prepared

Tom: (throws some trash to the ground) Okay…

Narrator: Stop! That is one way you can make floods worse!

Tom: What? What are you talking about

Narrator: By throwing trash to the ground, it gets into storm drains, blocks the passage of water and it flows over the land. You can start by being prepared right now by not throwing trash.

Tom: (leans down and picks the trash up) Sorry…I didn’t know…And everyone else does it

Narrator: That doesn’t make it right though. And maybe the other children didn’t know, just like you. (Narrator turns to students and asks): Did you know that dropping trash can block drains, rivers and cause floods? This includes sweeping dirt from road and into storm drains.

Tom: Really? How?

Narrator: if enough gathers in the drain, it lowers the depth of the drain and it takes less water away and is more likely to overflow….

Tom: Ahh…I understand!!

Ask your students what else could make Tom scared. You might find out some of the children's concerns about flooding or disasters. Have Tom react to each one--if Tom is funny the child will keep talking. This session could get silly, and that's fine. Just keep it fun. It will help you address any concerns or fears that students might have.

Act II

(Explain that this is a few days later, when the rains have started. It has been raining heavily and the land has water on top of it. It is muddy and harder to get around, while the river is getting higher)

Tom: (Looks into the distance, pointing to the river – If there is a river near you get Tom to point in that directions) Look! The river is starting to rise!

Narrator: Are you worried?

Tom: A little bit. But I have been with my friends to collect trash from the storm drains by the road. (Tom looks down, penitent) We felt a bit guilty about throwing trash to the ground…

Narrator: But now you know that this is not helpful.

Tom: (In a happy voice) Oh yes! But with the water’s rising I need to know more. What do I need to do to help myself and my family be prepared? I don’t want to move!

Narrator: (Shows Tom the paper with the plan on it) Tom, we are going to help you avoid this if possible, but you also need to be prepared to move if the floods become very bad.

Tom: (Looks down, sad voice) Oh yeah, I suppose so…Ok what should we do next?

Narrator: Well listening to the radio or watching TV is a good way of finding out if there is a flood risk in the area or province we live in.

Tom: That is a good idea, but we don’t have TV.

Narrator: Well, perhaps you could ask a neighbor who does. They will need to know the information too, so this is a good way of helping each other.

Tom: Okay. But if the flood does come, what about my things?

Narrator: Well, it is probably sensible to try and put things in a high place in your house. If you have two floors put valuable things there. This is a really good rule of thumb.

Tom: Rules, schmules…

Narrator: The rules are there to help keep you safe--not scary, if you get my drift.

Tom: Okay, okay!

Narrator: Here are a few more rules to being prepared: By valuable things we mean to include food you and your family, food for your animals, drinking water….

Tom: My toys…

Narrator: Well your toys are important, but food and water you can drink is really important…

Tom: Yeah, but there will be water EVERYWHERE if it floods….

Narrator: Yes but if you drink it, you will get sick. The water will have mixed with all the waste from animals and trash. It can give you diseases.

Tom: Oh yeah (rubs stomach) Maybe that is why I got ill last time…

Narrator: It probably was Tom!

Tom: Okay, what else can I do.

Narrator: Well, it is important to make up an emergency kit…

Tom: A what?

Narrator: An emergency kit is something that we have for when something unexpected happens, or for when we know something bad might occur…

Tom: (Interrupts) Like a flood!

Narrator: (Patiently) Yes Tom, sometimes we make a list of things that are useful to include in an emergency kit.

Tom: (Gets a bag. Use a small bag to show to students to put things in and prepare before the class) Okay, I’m ready! What should I put in….My toys right…

Narrator: Tom, we have just talked about this…

Tom: (Glumly) Oh alright!

Narrator: (Puts one thing at a time in to bag) We need to put the following in our emergency preparedness bag:

In the emergency kit there should be:

• a portable radio,

• a torch/flashlight,

• spare batteries for both the radio and the torch,

• A charged mobile phone with credit to send and receive text messages

• a first aid kit,

• rubber gloves,

• candles and waterproof matches,

• a waterproof bag for valuables,

• soap to wash hands,

• copies of important papers and emergency phone numbers.

It is a good idea to pack strong shoes, medication and family mementoes and prepared fresh food and drinks for the journey in case they had to be evacuated.

Tom: Okay. But if the flood does come, what about my things?

Narrator: Well, remember what we said about moving things to a higher floor or high point in the house and perhaps even tying them to something, in case the water comes in.

Tom: Yeah, then my toys will be safe…

Narrator: But if water does come into contact with the toys, they will need to be washed with soap and water

Tom: Okay, okay! I’ll make sure I do that! Germs right!

Narrator: Very good! You are learning fast Tom!

Tom (in a happy voice, punching the air) Oh yeah!!

Narrator: So children, what has Tom learned? How can he and his family get prepared for floods?

Ask your students what else Tom might need to do. This might involve what to do with animals and livestock. It may even have to do with vehicles. While the children interact with Tom, if you know the answers to the questions (provided in the teachers guide), you can answer, through Tom or yourself as narrator. If anything new comes up, explain that this can be explored later in the lesson.