This is a brief synopsis of my lesson on food allergies that I give to Josh's class every year. The reason I concentrate more on teaching the kids in Josh's class about food allergies than the teachers and administrations is because the kids are the ones who sit next to Josh during lunch, not the lunch lady. They are with him on the play ground, not his teacher. They are the ones bringing in snacks for birthdays, not the school nurse. So if I can get them to understand and be more aware, Josh has a better chance of avoiding a problem all together.
So the first thing I do is introduce myself and explain why I am there. We talk about what food allergies are and why they are dangerous. I've had a few kids think I was there to explain to them what foods THEY were allergic to or they think that whatever food allergies that Josh have were some how contagious. I love comments like these! They help me understand what age level I'm working with and what these kids are concerned with. I explained that having a food allergy is different than not liking a certain food, it's when the body decided that a particular food is like poison.
I go on to explained that the very most important person I could teach about food allergies is Josh's classmates. If anything were to happen with Josh, they will be the first ones to notice it and they will be the first ones to take action.
Then we talked about what an allergic reaction does to your body. I had them imagine a time when they had a really bad cold, coughing, congested, sore throat, the works. Then I asked them to imagine going from perfectly healthy to the worst cold you’ve had in only 10 minutes! Then I talked more specifically about what symptoms Josh will have, such as:
1. His tongue and throat will start to itch and burn
2. Red or swollen lips
3. He will start coughing (it will sound congested)
4. He’ll probably want to drink water
5. He might throw-up
6. He may get a red or develop a rash on his body called hives . (There are other symptoms but these are the ones that Josh usually gets first and these are the ones that tell you he is in trouble! I also explained that if he comes to school, coughing and sneezing all day, he probably just has a cold!)
Now simply because kids seem to be fascinated with small details, I also explain a little bit of what's going on medically during anaphylactic shock:
1. The body releases Histamine into the body.
2. The combination of Histamine and other chemicals makes his blood vessels dilate (this will dangerously drops his blood pressure)
3. Fluid will leak into muscles and tissues which will make the hands, face, neck and airway swell.
At his point I asked them if they can see any problems with the airway swelling. Then I do an object lesson. I had a small pvc pipe and asked the kids: If I had to breath through that tube all day would I get enough oxygen? Yes I would. Then I pulled out a small straw and asked the same thing of a straw...No I wouldn't get enough oxygen. (They can see the difference in size and when you breath through a straw you can feel it as well, of course I didn't encourage the kids to breath through the straw!)
We talked next about what they needed to do if they noticed Josh displaying any of these symptoms.
1. Go get help! FAST!
2. Tell them you think it's food allergies
3. Help get Josh to the office or get the office staff to Josh.
We then talked about what would happen next:
1. The office staff would administer Josh's Epi-pen. (I had the Epi-trainer and showed the kids how it worked)
2. They would also give him the Bendadryl fast-melt tablets.
3. And give Josh his Albuterol inhaler.
4. Then they would call 911
Again I went into some medical explanation:
1. The Epinepherine in the shot will help constrict the blood vessels.
2. The Benadryl is an Anti-Histamine so it will help the body get rid of that chemical.
3. The Albuterol will open up his airway.
4. The ambulance will need to be called because an Epi-Pen only has enough epinephrine to last 15-20 minutes...enough time to get to the hospital where they will need to administer a few other drugs.
I told them the story about the time where Joshua rode in an Ambulance because of peanut trace and watermelon. (Which is where the teacher was looking the most SHOCKED) I had blow up the pictures to an 8x10 and was able to show the kids what hives looked like.
Then I asked them for one more favor. To help prevent an anaphylactic reaction from happening. I asked them if they had any ideas of of what they could do to help Josh not be exposed to peanuts--sudden several little hands were in the air! They talked about being careful with what and where they ate peanut type food and then suggested that they washed their hands and face after eating peanut-type food. My favorite response was: "When we bring treats to class, and if it has peanut stuff in it, we could bring a different treat for Josh that has no tree-nuts or peanuts." They came up with this stuff all on their own. First of all it shows that 3rd graders are smart enough to think through a problem and come up with a good solution and it also shows that while they are being considerate and aware of Josh, they know they don't have to change THEIR lifestyle to accommodate Joshua. Josh has to live in a world full of peanut-eating people for the rest of his life, he has to be able to be okay with not getting a treat and keeping himself safe. The more people who are educated and AWARE of who has food allergies and are careful around them, the better off and safer Josh is, but they certainly don't need to sacrifice their own way of life because of him. ~Sorry tangent I didn't go into that with the kids.
I then taught them how to read labels and find allergy information. I held up a package of regular M&M's and a package of Peanut M&M's and asked which one Josh could have. Everyone pointed to the regular package. Trick question...I read the label of the reg. M&M's where it says that it may contain traces of Peanuts. They looked shocked! I held up the package of Peanut M&M's and told them that this bag, to Josh, was just like a bag of POISON. I explained that we actually handle poisons quite often (detergents, cleaners, and actual poison)...but that we know to be very careful with them. For Joshua's sake we need to be just as careful. Then I showed them a package of gummy bears and asked if he could have them? Nope...They were manufactured in a facility with peanuts. Then I held up a different brand of gummy bears and asked if Josh could have them. I love tricking kids! They all said no, so I read the back and showed them that it was okay for Josh to have. That's why it's important to read labels every time.
I told them one more story about how in his 1st grade class at his old school they actually served PB&J in the cafeteria. For field day the lunch ladies brought out sack lunches and asked if anyone in the class was allergic to peanuts and guess who responded…not Josh! It was his classmates who heard the question and they made sure he didn’t get a peanut sandwich and they also made sure the whole class washed their hands after they were done eating. I was so proud and grateful to those students in that class. That day could have turned out pretty bad had it not been for a great group of friends watching out for Josh.
So there it is, an easy simple explanation on food allergies and how to watch and avoid emergency's.
Let me know you thoughts and if you have an idea to make this lesson even better!
Thanks,
Food Allergy Week: Education and awareness are key factors on keeping kids with food allergies safe!
P.S. I love how blogger's spelling suggestion for anaphylactic is unapologetic---it's true.
1 comment:
Thanks for all the info. This weeks posts have been scary but very informing. I am glad to know what to look for with food allergies!
Post a Comment