Our Living ClassroomLearn • grow • choose

2026–27 • Labs & wellness

Clean Cover Care

Dry layers and blankets can help slow heat loss.

Classroom lesson: Emergency Blanket and Staying Warm

Today I can…

choose a safe way to stay warm

Words to know

Words for this lesson

BLANKETLAYERSDRYWARMSNOW

Follow along

What we will do

  1. 1

    Choose

    Choose to look at a blanket or its picture.

  2. 2

    Look

    Compare the adult’s safe material samples.

  3. 3

    Cover a model

    Tell the adult which cover to place on a model.

  4. 4

    Compare

    Watch the demonstration. Nobody tests cold on their body.

  5. 5

    Choose safety

    Choose a trusted adult and a warm, safe place.

  6. 6

    Share

    Show one way to stay warm.

Speech, sign, point, eye gaze, or AAC

Tell us what you need

Choose a word when you are ready.

LOOKTRYWATCHHELPBREAK
Teacher & para guideMaterials, learning objectives, access, and safety

Materials

  • For 3–11 students: 1 clean tabletop doll/model, small fabric blanket, paper sheet, adult-controlled emergency blanket or photograph, 2–4 trays and large dry/warm/cold/material cards.
  • Optional adult-led test: 2 identical leakproof bottles, equal comfortably warm water, 2 suitable thermometers and timer. No student water handling, hot plates, heaters, lamps or flames.

Safety first

Never wrap students, heads or faces; no body-enclosure play. Keep film and bags away from mouths, electrical equipment, heaters and flame. Staff keep any reflective film under direct control. No hot water or hot surfaces. Adults prepare and handle all test bottles. Stop for leaks, unsafe temperature or distress; use the dry-model route instead. Cold illness concerns go to school staff under emergency procedures.

Follow each student's IEP, health, feeding, allergy, behavior, and mobility plans.

Individual learning objectives

Choose Level 1, 2 or 3 individually in either House group. A House is not an ability level. Watching, directing and communicating a boundary are valid participation.

Level 1

Choose a material, request watch/stop/help, or match a blanket picture in one of two invitations using an established response.

Level 2

Compare two materials and help place or direct a dry layer on a model, then select warm/cold or dry/wet with support.

Level 3

Predict a useful layer and communicate an observed property; during the optional measured test, use start/end readings to identify a smaller temperature drop or an inconclusive result.

Skill focus: Warmth awareness, material comparison, emergency choice

30-minute teaching sequence

Introduce · 5 min

Show a small fabric blanket and a folded emergency blanket. Offer a quiet photograph instead of crinkling the foil. Ask “What can help when we feel cold?” State the challenge: choose a dry cover for a toy/model. Explain that a material cannot make heat by itself.

I do · 10 min

Adult shows dry fabric and paper; student may look or touch. Drape a short piece over the model’s body with its face uncovered. Keep emergency-blanket film adult-controlled. Model one layer at a time. Optional: adult prepares identical sealed leakproof bottles with equal comfortably warm water and records initial temperature before students observe.

We do · 10 min

Students choose cloth/paper/photo, place a dry layer on the tabletop model with support, or direct the adult. Compare soft/stiff and quiet/crinkly without requiring touch. Partners select a layer and give a property reason. Optional measured comparison uses the same bottles, water volume, starting temperature, location and time; adult reads thermometers.

Exit choice · 5 min

Choose a blanket or dry-layer picture and complete “helps keep warm,” or make an accessible material choice. Ask “What did you observe?” For the optional test, report smaller drop, same result or not enough difference; do not infer performance from touch alone.

Science note: Insulation slows heat transfer; it does not create heat. Fabric layers can hold still air, and a reflective emergency blanket can reduce some heat loss when used correctly. Room-temperature touch alone cannot establish which material keeps heat best. The default lesson compares material properties on a model; the optional adult-led temperature test needs comparable measurements.

Curriculum connection: 2-PS1-1: observe and compare material properties. 3-5-ETS1-3: use a controlled comparison to identify improvements; optional accessible fair-test extension.

Prepare for this learner

Select a level for each learner in either House group. Offer one-step cues, AAC, gaze, signs, speech or partner-assisted scanning. Use the learner’s established vision and access plan; high contrast is an option, not a universal CVI prescription. Respect refusal, watch-only and breaks.

Lower-staffing option: Use one seated dry model and two large material/photo choices. Adult drapes the selected fabric, leaving the face open. Omit water, thermometers, loose film and sound demonstrations.

Record the response, access method, opportunities and support used. Record observed, declined or not assessed separately; a communicated refusal is not a failure of participation.

Word lesson plan

Editable classroom source plan. Source files may retain earlier titles. Use the individual level choices and safety guidance above when preparing the session.

Download original blanket and warmth lesson plan (Word)

Access supports

Communication Model five core words; accept speech, AAC, eye gaze, gestures, object choices, signs, and partner-assisted scanning.

Sensory Present one material at a time. Offer tools, gloves, observe-only, a scent-free choice, and a quiet break.

Motor Stabilize containers, pre-loosen parts, use adapted grips, and offer seated, standing, partner, or directing roles.

Learning Show the finished result, model first, use short visual steps, repeat, and record the least support needed.

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