When “What Should We Do?” Gets a Practical Answer

Building a culture of safety starts at an early age. However, knowing safety rules is not enough. It is equally important to know how to apply that knowledge in practice.

Guided by this approach, under the theme “Learn, Play, Try,” specialists from the Disaster Risk Reduction National Platform (ARNAP) Foundation conducted educational and practical activities at Yerevan Kindergarten No. 104 to strengthen emergency preparedness.

Organized at the initiative of the kindergarten director, the activities included staff training, an interactive session with children, and a practical exercise.

Staff Training: Training was provided for kindergarten staff, including those assigned specific responsibilities under the institution’s Disaster Risk Management (DRM) Plan.

The training covered emergency response procedures, the distribution of roles and responsibilities, appropriate actions during fires and earthquakes, and organized evacuation.

Particular emphasis was placed on the importance of advance planning, coordinated actions, and effective cooperation among staff members.

Interactive Learning Session with Children: Approximately 60 children from the kindergarten’s older age groups participated in an interactive learning session.

Through age-appropriate educational videos and questions and answers, children learned essential safety rules and appropriate actions to take during earthquakes and fires in a simple, engaging, and accessible way.

Practical Exercise: The activities concluded with a practical exercise on “Implementing Earthquake Response Procedures,” involving all kindergarten staff and children.

Throughout the exercise, evolving and increasingly complex scenarios, including simulated casualty situations, challenged participants to respond quickly, make decisions under pressure, and manage multiple tasks simultaneously.

The reflections shared by staff during the post-exercise debriefing were particularly valuable. Participants noted that the changing scenarios and simulated casualty situations created a highly stressful environment. This experience highlighted how quickly an emergency can complicate decision-making and coordination, potentially leading to confusion and a breakdown in the management of response operations.

The exercise helped participants better understand the challenges they may face during a real emergency and reinforced the importance of established procedures, clearly defined responsibilities, and practical preparedness.

The ARNAP Foundation is committed to fostering a culture of safety from an early age while strengthening the preparedness and practical response capacities of educational institution staff.

The principle behind “Learn, Play, Try” is simple: safety knowledge becomes truly valuable when reinforced through practical experience and transformed into the ability to act effectively.