St John's Ambulance very kindly put on a nationwide first aid lesson and livestreamed it across the country. This meant we were able to learn first aid live in our classroom! The children were very excited and eager to learn skills that will not only help them for Bonfire night but will help them in any emergency. The main point of the lesson was that people who know what to do in an emergency can save lives. 

The lesson was split into three stages; burns, choking and calling 999.

During the burns part of the lesson the children learnt what to do if someone received a burn from a sparkler on bonfire night. It showed how accidents can sometimes happen when adults are not around and it is important for children to be able to help. We learnt that the first thing to do with a burn is to place it under cool running water for 10 minutes to cool down the burn. If no water is available then milk or a cold can of drink will work. The burn then needs to be placed into a plastic bag or wrapped in cling film. We then completed a quiz to test what we had learnt.

In the choking section the children learnt how to help someone who was choking on an apple. The session demonstrated how to correctly do five back slaps and five abdominal thrusts. The children were very interested and got a chance to put their hands in similar positions. However, the children were reminded that they should never do this on a person unless they are choking.

In the final section the children learnt how to call the emergency services using 999 or 112. They were taught what kind of information they would need to give. As a class, we completed another quiz to check the children's understanding.

The children really enjoyed learning how to help others in an emergency and felt more confident about dealing with these situations. It was reminded that the most important thing to do in an emergency situation is to look after themselves and get help for anyone who may need it.