Outdoor Survival Skills

Year Level

Year 1

Duration

60 minutes

Class Size

2 students

Unit Context

This is Lesson 2 in the Year 1 unit "Past, Present and Future," aligned with the NSW Humanities and Social Sciences (HASS) curriculum. This lesson focuses on developing basic outdoor survival skills such as shelter building, navigation, emergency preparedness, and simple first aid through interactive activities suitable for young learners.

Learning Outcomes and Curriculum Links

HASS Content Descriptions:
ACHASSK031: Explore stories and events from the past and present about students’ own family and community.
ACHASSK032: Identify important events celebrated or commemorated in the local community.
ACHASSI020: Pose questions about past and present objects, people, places and events.
ACHASSI021: Sort and record information and data, including location, in tables and on plans and labelled maps.
ACHASSI022: Sequence familiar objects and events.
ACHASSI023: Share observations and communicate ideas in a range of ways.
Achievement Standard (Year 1 HASS):
Students identify continuity and change in daily life.
They develop questions, collect and sort information from observations and provided sources.
They interpret information, discuss perspectives, draw conclusions and share narratives about people, places, and the past.

Learning Intentions

By the end of the lesson, students will:

Understand fundamental outdoor survival skills including how to build a basic shelter.
Recognise simple navigation techniques using natural landmarks.
Discuss the importance of being prepared for outdoor emergencies.
Learn basic first aid responses appropriate for young children.
Express their ideas and experiences verbally and through simple drawings.

Success Criteria

Students will be able to:

Build a simple shelter using natural materials or provided resources.
Identify natural landmarks to help with orientation.
Explain the importance of staying safe outdoors.
Demonstrate awareness of basic first aid steps such as asking for help.
Share their learning through drawings and simple verbal explanations.

Resources Required

Large sheets or tarps, ropes or string, sticks and leaves for shelter building.
Natural or instructional maps with simple landmarks.
First aid visual aids (pictures or models of basic first aid).
Whiteboard or large paper and markers.
Safety equipment (gloves, wipes).
Storybooks or pictorial story sequencing cards about outdoor adventure and safety.

Lesson Structure

1. Introduction and Warm-Up (10 minutes)

Activity:
Begin with a short story or a pictorial book about children exploring outdoors and encountering various challenges (e.g., needing shelter, finding their way, or helping a friend hurt).
Ask students what they think are important things to know when outside.
Purpose:
Activate prior knowledge and curiosity about outdoor survival and safety.
Encourage students to pose questions about outdoor adventures, as per ACHASSI020.

2. Shelter Building Activity (15 minutes)

Activity:
Demonstrate how to build a simple lean-to shelter using sticks and leaves or tarps and ropes.
Students work together to build their own shelter with teacher guidance.
Learning Focus:
Explore how people in the past might have made shelters to protect themselves.
Use observation and sorting skills (ACHASSI021).
Safety Notes:
Emphasise caution with sticks and materials; teacher supervises closely to ensure safety.

3. Navigation and Natural Landmarks (10 minutes)

Activity:
Take the students on a short walk around the school yard or outdoor area.
Identify natural landmarks such as trees, rocks, and buildings.
Practice simple directions: "walk towards the big tree," "turn left at the rock."
Learning Focus:
Develop an understanding of location and basic navigation without technology.
Encourage using position and sequence language (ACHASSI022).

4. Emergency Preparedness Discussion and Basic First Aid (15 minutes)

Activity:
Discuss what to do if someone gets hurt or lost outdoors.
Use simple role-play to demonstrate asking for help and basic first aid such as applying a cold compress or cleaning a small cut (simulate with wipes).
Learning Focus:
Develop awareness of personal safety and emergency responses.
Introduce basic first aid knowledge appropriate for young learners.
Reinforce: Staying calm, telling an adult, and knowing emergency contact details.

5. Reflection and Sharing (10 minutes)

Activity:
Invite students to draw or verbally share what they learnt about outdoor survival skills.
Use guiding questions: “What did you like about building a shelter?”, “How can you keep safe outside?”, “What will you do if someone gets hurt?”
Learning Focus:
Communicate ideas and experiences using oral language and drawings (ACHASSI023).
Summarise and consolidate learning.

Assessment

Formative:
Observation of students actively participating in shelter building and navigation activities.
Listening to students’ responses and explanations during discussions and reflections.
Informal Feedback:
Encourage students to express questions or concerns about outdoor safety.
Documentation:
Collect students’ drawings and notes (if any) as evidence of understanding.

Differentiation and Support

Provide visual aids and step-by-step demonstrations for all activities.
Support verbal instructions with gestures and modelling.
Use teamwork to support less confident students during hands-on tasks.
Ensure safety at all times with close supervision and preparedness for first aid.

Teacher Notes

Prioritise a safe environment and reinforce the importance of listening carefully.
This outdoor focused lesson integrates historical and geographical thinking by connecting past survival skills with present practices in students’ own community and environment.
Adapt activities in inclement weather to indoor role-play and demonstrations.

Extensions

Encourage students to make a simple "safety checklist" for outdoor adventures to take home and share with family.
Begin a class scrapbook that traces family stories related to outdoor experiences or survival.

This lesson is designed to wow educators by combining hands-on learning with critical thinking and communication skills that meet the NSW Year 1 HASS curriculum. The lesson fosters curiosity about the past linked to practical present-day skills, building a strong foundation for historical and geographical inquiry in a meaningful, personal context.

Teaching Instructions