Hey there, busy bees! I had the most amazing experience recently when I was asked to speak to a group of kindergarteners, first and second graders about what nurses do. I've done guest speaking before, but always about the violin. I never thought about anyone asking me to talk about nursing! The best part? My daughter is in the class too, so I was extra excited to be able to teach her and her classmates about the incredible career of being a nurse. Plus, I got to educate them about the importance of hand hygiene, which is crucial in preventing the spread of germs.
Scroll Down ⬇️ at the end to see my lesson plan!
Kids absolutely adore receiving gifts (but I'm an adult and still love getting gifts too 😬)! What better way to get them excited about nursing than by giving them a special treat? I wanted to do something memorable that would not only get them excited about nursing, but also help them remember the occasion for years to come. That's why I decided to surprise them with a unique gift that would make their hearts skip a beat with excitement!
I had so much fun putting together goodie bags for the kids - I was so excited, my teenage daughter had to slow me down and remind me that this wasn't a birthday party! I purchased some medical theme products from Amazon and put together a Nurse Folder and ID badge for each student, which you can purchase in my shop to use with your own kids at home or in the classroom. At the end of my lesson, I had the students wear their badges and we took a group photo! 📸
Watch My Videos of My Prep
Putting together the goodie bags
These are the links to everything I created and used:
Digital Products:
Amazon Purchases:
To make the experience even more special, I asked my boyfriend "my murse" (who is also a nurse) to help me out. We both had a blast, and we've already been asked to volunteer to teach at another school after I posted our experience on my Instagram stories! It's so rewarding to be able to use my public health nursing certification in this way, and I have a feeling that this is just the beginning. Who knows where this new venture will take me, but one thing's for sure: I'm excited to find out!
My Lesson Plan - Elementary Level
This lesson will take about 30-45minutes
Welcome:
Today, we're going to explore what nurses do and where they work. Are you ready to become junior nurses for the day?
First, let's see what you think nurses do.
Ask the Students:
- What do they think nurses do?
They teach people how to stay healthy, care for the sick and injured
- Where do you think nurses work?
Hospitals, schools, they go to people's houses, teachers and teach others to be a nurse, Theme parks Disneyland, cruise ship, write books and journals
Introduce Yourself
I have been a nurse for _____ years and work at _________. Nurses care for the sick and injured. I will show you how my day is at a hospital (if you don't work at a hospital you can inform the students, "let's see the day of a nurse who works at a hospital).
- Ask for 2 volunteers
- One will come in the hospital because they have stomach ache
- The other will come in because they are coughing
We're going to learn how nurses take care of them.
- They will wait in the Emergency Room (have students wait in a section and pretend it's the ER)
- Have the patient in pain walk to you. They are arriving on your unit from the ER
- Our first patient needs help with her tummy ache, so we'll quickly put on a gown, a wristband, and EKG pads. We'll check her vital signs, like her blood pressure and temperature, and listen to her heart and lungs.
- Check Blood Pressure
- Explain to students: Blood pressure is a way to measure how hard your heart is pumping to move blood through your body. When the doctor or nurse measures your blood pressure, they use a special cuff that goes around your arm.
- Use a real blood pressure cuff and place on the student's arm and pretend to start the machine.
- While placing BP cuff on, ask the students who have had their blood pressure taken
- Explain how it will feel like: When the cuff inflates, you might feel a tight squeezing sensation on your arm, almost like a big hug. This is because the cuff is squeezing your arm for a short time. After that, the cuff slowly deflates and the squeezing feeling goes away.
- Let the class know her blood pressure is normal. Explain what can cause high blood pressure, like eating too much salt and not enough fruits and vegetables.
- Listen to the patient's heart and lungs
- Bring the other patient in from the ER
- put a gown
- wrist band
- check vitals
- As nurses, we teach patients a lot on how to stay healthy and keep others healthy. Teach the patient and the class:
Remember, when coughing it's important to teach kids to cover their cough in way that limits the spread of germs. When a person coughs or sneezes into the open air without covering it, the germs can travel up to 5 feet from the mouth. (Demonstrate how long 5 feet is)
If you cover your cough with your hands, it may stop the spread of the cough, but the droplets are now on the hands. If you touch anything after, it will continue the spread of germs (Pretend to cough on you hands and start touching the student's desk and items in the classroom).
- Walk over to the the Patient in Pain to "give pain meds"
- Before I walk in my patient's room to give her medication, I will wash or sanitize my hands to prevent germs
- HANDWASHING
- Ask the class: When Should we wash our hands?
- Test the kids and ask if they know the order of steps of washing their hands.
- Steps
- Wet your hands with clean running water.
- Put some soap on your hands.
- Rub your hands together and make some bubbles.
- Rub your palms together, then rub the back of each hand, and then rub in between your fingers.
- Don't forget to clean your fingertips and nails too.
- Rub your thumbs in a circular motion.
- Keep washing your hands for at least 20 seconds, which is about the time it takes to sing "Happy Birthday" two times.
- Rinse your hands with water.
- Dry your hands with a clean towel or let them air dry.
*Tell volunteers to go down and have students clap for them
- We stay with our patient for 12 hrs. During that time nurses:
- give their medicine
- change bandages
- help scared patients by talking to them or praying with them.
- help them move around.
HOW TO BECOME A NURSE?
- Have to finish High School
- Go to college and take science classes
- Go into a nursing program where you learn everything about nursing
- Take a BIG test to be a nurse
Demonstration:
- Heart station - have one group lesson to each other's heart beat with a stethoscope
- Hand station - Demonstrate the importance of using soap when washing your hands.
- Supplies needed: Bowls, black pepper, water, hand soap and napkins
- Line of bowls and fill will water and sprinkle a large amount of pepper in each bowl.
- Instruct the students to place their finger in the bowl and let them see how easily the pepper (which represents the germs) sticks to their finger.
- Have student dip their finger in a bowl of hand soap
- Place their finger into the area with the pepper and watching the "Germs" running away
- Hand out Goodie Bags and Folder
- Have students wear their badges and let them know they are nurses today. Take a group photo with them.