What you absolutely need in your emergency classroom Grab and Go kit

You know that moment when the fire alarm goes off? You jump out of your chair- heart is racing- and you have no idea what to do? My first year…it was like this. I practically grabbed everything I needed in case it was a real fire. I created my own classroom grab and go kit just for these moments so I don’t have to stress during these wild moments and can grab my kit and go!

Why do you need a grab and go kit?

Why do you need an emergency grab and go kit? First, what if the school catches on fire? Do you know what to grab? What if there was a code red? Again, what do you grab? What if you were off campus and a had sub? What will they need to grab? Creating this kit will 

How to make a grab and go kit

Ready to build your grab and go kit? This should take a quick amount of time and I will give you a list of things that you will need to create the kit.

Determine what you need

I really would advise you to be aware of what you really want to add in the kit. Think of it as that emergency kit. Really- it should be for emergency moments only. 

1. List of students names
2. Students names plus additional information
3. A writing utensil
4. Red paper
5. Green paper
6. Plastic Sleeve
7. Clipboard (one to open or just a plain one)
8. Command Hook

Find the important items

First, you need to recognize what important information that parents have given you. I have an entire spreadsheet just for emergencies. These spreadsheets make my life easier in case there was a real emergency. I create a Google Form for the parents to fill out at Meet The Teacher and then I am able to just export it. I am sure you are thinking “What questions should I ask the parents?”

1. Student Name
2. First Parent Contact
3. First parent phone number
4. Second parent contact
5. Second parent phone number
6. What hospital can I take the student to in case of emergency? (I don’t ask for ID numbers or Insurance names because the front office has that)
7. Any additional people I should contact incase of an emergency?
8. Do you have someone that is approved to pick them up in case of emergencies?
9. Anything else?

Build The Classroom Grab & Go Kit

Let’s gather everything first…

Part 1: Once you have gathered everyone’s information, go into the responses. On the right side, there will be an export. I export all of the data for each student. It makes it one massive excel spread sheet. I then will put that in sheet protectors or laminate it. 

Part 2: On another piece of paper, I will create a spreadsheet with all of the students’s names in ABC order. Then at the top, I label 10 boxes with Fire Drill 1-10. Another 10 boxes are Codes 1-10. We have 10 of these a year due to the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Act that was enacted after the mass shooting. Some states obviously will be different so follow what your district/state tells you to do.

Part 3: Next, grab a red paper for copy paper. You will also need a green copy paper. Put those together and slide them both into a sheet protector. When you are all outside for a fire alarm, you will need to contact your leaders immediately with a missing kid. How do you do this? Well,  if all of your kids are accounted for, hold up the green side. If you are missing a kid, hold up the red side. Simple and effective.

Grab & Go!

Now is the putting it all together. The red/green pack will go inside the clipboard OR it goes at the back of the clipped part. Next, on the inside you will place the emergency information chart. You don’t want that exposed to every student (you know- confidentiality) so you can either place it behind the colored copy paper pack OR behind the master checklist. Then, you will have your fire drill/code checklist at the very front. I keep that on the front so when I am checking who is present, I won’t be fiddling with paper. 

There are 2 more things that you have to do. The first thing you should do is attach a pen or pencil to the clipboard. Some clipboards have a pen spot and will remain in the clipboard or on the inside. You can also just use string to attach to the clipboard and the pen. The next thing you will do is attach a command hook by the exit of your classroom. I only have one entrance and exit so I just keep it at my door. Then, I will add the command hook at eye level for ME. It’s like a little reminder of “heyyyy don’t forget this!” when there’s an emergency.

Take some time

Yes, it will take up some of your time. I totally get that. Think about it like this though… whenever you need to leave quickly…you use this. Anytime you have a sub- just add it to the sub plans where the classroom grab and go kit is. This is done once and then you are set for life. Or…your teaching career.