Fire Safety at Home

Welcome!

Your student learner participated in Isaac Foundation's adaptive fire safety education in collaboration with your school district's local fire department. 

Why Fire Safety Matters

Fire safety is not just about rules or drills—it’s about understanding what to do when stress is high and the environment feels overwhelming. For many learners, especially those who need accommodations or modifications, traditional fire safety instruction does not account for how communication, cognitive processing, sensory input, and regulation affect decision-making in an emergency.

When fire safety is taught in ways that make sense to the learner, it builds confidence, predictability, and trust. These skills don’t just reduce risk during emergencies—they support safer interactions with helpers, clearer communication, and stronger outcomes for individuals with different abilities, their families, and our first responders.

Fire safety matters because everyone deserves access to safety education that works for them.

Our Why

Our passion for adaptive fire safety education comes from both lived experience and professional responsibility. John Goodman has spent his 27-year career responding to fires and emergencies, seeing firsthand how quickly situations escalate when people are unsure how to respond or cannot communicate their needs. As a parent to a child with significant support needs, he also understands how traditional fire safety education often misses or fails to meet learning needs of our community's most vulnerable citizens—those with disabilities. Together with his wife Holly, Isaac Foundation's founder and executive director, they’ve seen the gap between what safety education assumes and what many learners actually need. Rather than accept that gap, they chose to act—combining real-world emergency experience with an understanding of developmental differences to create fire safety education that is appropriate, accessible, and effective. This work matters to us because it protects not only the learner, but their family, their caregivers, and our first responders. who serve them.

Fire Safety Learning Targets Over Time

As learners grow and develop, fire safety education is revisited annually and builds over time. Instruction is adapted based on readiness, communication style, and stress tolerance. During our annual visit to your student’s classroom (yes—we visit yearly), learners receive instruction and practice in the following areas:

 

First Responder Recognition & Safety Awareness

  • -Identifying contextual cues on firefighter and other first responder uniforms
  • -Practicing appropriate bubble space around first responders and their equipment
  • -Acclimating to bunker gear, emergency sounds, and tones. Bunker gear does not have bubble space

 

 

 

Communication & Personal Information

  • -Sharing their name and caregiver information
  • -Differentiating safe individuals with whom personal information may be shared
  • -Accessing and sharing personal information using words, visuals, or communication devices
  • -Communicating medical conditions, allergies, and medications as appropriate

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Escape Planning & Emergency Response

  • -Understanding what an emergency alarm means
  • -Practicing “low and go”
  • -Identifying exits and safe waiting locations
  • -Knowing when and where to wait for help
  • -Understanding the importance of sleeping with bedroom doors closed (see video)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sensory Awareness & Regulation During Emergencies

  • -Listening to smoke alarms and discussing what they sound like
  • -Practicing responses that consider sensory sensitivities
  • -Understanding the importance of smoke alarm placement in all bedrooms due to increased risk of electrical fires
  • -Building predictable routines to reduce panic during emergencies

 

 

 

Fire Risk Awareness & Impulse Control

  • -Identifying items that can start fires
  • -Understanding which items require adult assistance
  • -Practicing safe choices and asking for help
  • -Using safety tools such as lock boxes for safe storage of fire-starting devices

 

 

 

 

 

 

Home & Electrical Safety

  • -Safe charging of devices on hard surfaces
  • -Understanding risks associated with cracked or damaged phones and tablets
  • -Lithium-ion battery awareness
  • -Identifying safe and unsafe power cords, charging cords, extension cords, and power strips.
  • -Understanding the risks of overloading outlets and using extension cords or power strips with heaters, fans, vacuums, and air conditioning units

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kitchen & Household Fire Safety

  • -Recognizing heat sources and hot surfaces (fireplaces, heaters, cooktops, and barbecues)
  • -Safe use of candles in the home (honestly, they only belong on a birthday cake)
  • -Microwave safety
  • -Learning safe kitchen behaviors as developmentally appropriate
  • -Understanding basic cooking and appliance safety
  • -Knowing what to do if a fire starts on a cooktop or in an oven

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Decision-Making & Situational Awareness

  • -Identifying unsafe situations
  • -Practicing what to do when something doesn’t feel safe
  • -Learning how to pause and get help rather than act impulsively

Reinforcement Over Time

  • -Revisiting familiar concepts each year
  • -Expanding skills as learners mature
  • -Building confidence through repetition and predictability

Ways to Support Fire Safety Learning at Home

You do not need to practice everything listed below. Choose what fits your learner, your family, and your routines. Small, consistent moments matter more than doing it all.

 

 

Talk About Helpers & Uniforms

Why: Reinforces recognition without stress.

Look at pictures of firefighters, police officers, and EMS first responders. Talk about what they wear and how uniforms help us identify safe helpers. Point out uniforms when you see first responders in the community.

Practice questions:

  • “Who helps us in an emergency?”
  • “What job do you think this first responder does?”

Tip: Some learners do best with pictures or short videos rather than conversation.

 

Practice Sharing Important Information

Why: Communication under stress is a critical safety skill.

Practice sharing a name, caregiver name, and a contact phone number.

  • -For learners who use AAC devices, create an emergency folder that includes name, caregiver contact information, medications, allergies, and important medical details. First responders rely on this information during emergencies.
  • -For learners with articulation challenges or limited verbal communication, practice writing their name, caregiver name, and phone number.
  • -For learners without personal technology, keep information on a card in an easy-to-access location such as a backpack.
  • -For learners with personal technology, set up the In Case of Emergency (ICE) feature on their phone or tablet so first responders can access information quickly.

Tip: Short, calm practice works better than quizzing.

Review the Home Escape Plan

Why: Familiarity reduces panic.

  • -Depending on your family member’s ability to assess danger, a waiting spot beside a window in a room with the door closed may be the safest option during a house fire. A closed door can help slow the spread of fire until help arrives for a window rescue.
  • -Practice “low and go” during calm moments.
  • -Talk about staying by the waiting spot (window) until help arrives.
  • -Model how to get low and crawl while covering ears, if needed.

Tip: Keep practice fun. One walk through is enough, but repeat it regularly so it becomes muscle memory. Once your learner is comfortable, you can use a low-volume recording of a smoke alarm to initiate practice and help connect all the steps.

 

Listen to the Smoke Alarm Together

Why: Predictability supports regulation.

  • -Talk about what the alarm sounds like and what it means.
  • -If helpful, briefly listen to a recorded alarm sound.
  • Practice what to do next in a calm, supportive way.

Tip: Let your learner control the volume and playback of the recording. Encourage bravery and gradual exposure. Some learners may eventually work up to pressing the test button on a working smoke alarm. Skip this step entirely if alarms are overwhelming—visual reminders are a valid alternative.

 

 

Support Safe Decision-Making

Why: Fire safety includes impulse control.

  • -Identify items that only adults should handle (lighters, matches, candles, vaping devices).
  • -Practice getting a safe adult when an unsafe item is found.
  • -Use lockboxes or visual reminders when appropriate.

Tip: Focus on what to do rather than what not to do.

Free lockboxes for fire-starting devices are available by contacting the Isaac Foundation at [email protected].

 

 

Practice Electrical Safety

Why: Many home fires involve electrical devices and charging habits. Practicing safe routines helps learners recognize risks and make safer choices.

  • -Talk about charging devices only on hard, flat surfaces (not beds, couches, or pillows).
  • -Check phones, tablets, and charging cords together for cracks, fraying, or other damage, and practice telling a trusted adult when something looks unsafe.
  • -Practice unplugging devices by holding the plug, not pulling on the cord.
  • -Conduct a home safety patrol together to identify unsafe electrical setups, including extension cords or power strips being used with heaters, fans, or air conditioning units.
  • -Talk about lithium-ion batteries and why devices should not be used or charged if they are damaged, overheating, or swelling.

Tip: Short conversations during everyday routines—like plugging in a device or turning on a heater—are often more effective than formal lessons. If it feels helpful, turn this into a safety awareness game by staging a few unsafe charging or plug-in situations and seeing if your learner can “catch” them.

 

 

Ways to Practice Kitchen & Household Fire Safety

Why: Many household fires begin in the kitchen or around heat sources. Practicing safe routines helps learners recognize risks and respond more safely.

  • -Walk through your home together and identify heat sources and hot surfaces, such as fireplaces, heaters, cooktops, ovens, and barbecues.
  • -Talk about candle safety and set clear expectations for when candles are used. (In many homes, candles are safest when limited to special occasions like birthday cakes.)
  • -Practice microwave safety, including using microwave-safe containers, waiting for food to cool, and getting help if something looks or smells unsafe.
  • -Involve your learner in safe kitchen routines when developmentally appropriate, such as standing back from the stove, using oven mitts, or watching an adult cook.
  • -Keep the cooktop surface completely clear at all times—including groceries, candles, and even pots or pans with recently cooked food.

Tip: Narrating during everyday cooking or meal preparation is often more effective than formal lessons. Modeling safe behavior, repeating simple messages, and using permanent visual supports in the kitchen help safety skills become routine.

 

Notice Everyday Fire Safety Moments

Why: Learning sticks best in real life.

  • -Talk about safe charging of devices.
  • -Point out heaters, cords, and power strips.
  • -Involve your learner in safe kitchen routines when developmentally appropriate.

Gentle Reminder

You do not need to practice everything. Choose what fits your learner, your family, and your routines. Small, consistent moments matter more than doing it all.

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