English:Basic First Aid
Basic First Aid
Introduction
Basic First Aid means giving quick, simple help to a person who is injured or suddenly ill until a responsible adult, trained first aider, or emergency medical team can take over. In Grades 5–6, your most important first-aid skills are to stay safe, get help quickly, notice serious warning signs, and give only the care you know how to give.
First aid can help in the playground, at home, during sports, on a trip, or in a public place. You do not have to be a doctor to help. You do need to think before you act. A calm helper who checks for danger, calls for help, and follows instructions can make a real difference.
Important safety rule: This course teaches awareness and basic actions. It does not replace a certified first-aid course. Practise CPR, choking techniques, and the recovery position only with a trained adult or instructor. Use a training manikin for CPR. Never practise real chest compressions or choking thrusts on a classmate.
Learning Goals
By the end of this aiMOOC, you should be able to explain what first aid is, check whether a scene is safe, get adult and emergency help, describe how to respond to bleeding and burns, recognise choking and breathing emergencies, explain the purpose of CPR and an AED, and make sensible choices in common first-aid situations.
Start with Safety
Before helping anyone, look around. A helper who gets hurt creates another emergency. Watch for traffic, fire, electricity, broken glass, dangerous animals, deep water, smoke, chemicals, or anything else that could harm you.
Use the simple idea Check – Call – Care.
- Check: Check that the place is safe, check whether the person responds, and look for serious problems such as abnormal breathing or heavy bleeding.
- Call: Get a responsible adult and call the local emergency number when the situation is serious.
- Care: Give only the first aid you know, while following instructions from a trained adult or emergency dispatcher.
If the scene is unsafe, do not rush in. Move to safety and call for help. Do not move an injured person unless there is immediate danger, they need to be moved for lifesaving care, or an emergency professional tells you to do so.
Calling for Emergency Help
Emergency numbers are different around the world. For example, 112 is used in many countries, while 911 is used in the United States and Canada. Know the emergency number where you live, study, and travel.
When you call, say where you are, what happened, how many people need help, and what you can see, such as whether the person is breathing or bleeding badly. Answer the dispatcher's questions. Put the phone on speaker if that helps you follow instructions while staying with the person. Do not end the call until the dispatcher says you can.
Check Response and Breathing
Speak loudly: “Are you okay?” If it is safe, gently tap the person's shoulder. If there is no response, call for an adult and emergency help immediately.
Look for normal breathing. Gasping is not normal breathing. If an unresponsive person is not breathing normally, emergency help is needed at once. Ask someone to bring an AED if one is available. Begin CPR if you are trained, or follow the emergency dispatcher's instructions.
If an unresponsive person is breathing normally, keep watching their breathing and get emergency help. If you have been taught how and there is no reason to suspect a serious neck or back injury, the recovery position can help keep the airway open. If you think there may be a neck or back injury, follow the emergency dispatcher's instructions about movement.
CPR and AED Awareness
CPR is used when a person is unresponsive and is not breathing normally. Chest compressions help move blood around the body while emergency help is on the way. CPR methods are not exactly the same for adults, children, and babies, so hands-on training matters.
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For this course, remember the decision: unresponsive + not breathing normally = emergency call + CPR + AED as soon as possible. If you have not learned CPR in person, an emergency dispatcher can guide you. Never practise chest compressions on a real person who does not need CPR.
An AED is a portable device that checks the heart rhythm and gives spoken or visual instructions. It will advise a shock only when one is needed. Turn it on and follow its prompts. During analysis or a shock, make sure nobody is touching the person.
Bleeding and Wounds
For a small cut or graze, tell an adult, wash your hands, rinse the wound with clean water if appropriate, and cover it with a clean dressing or plaster.
Heavy bleeding is different. Get emergency help. If it is safe for you to help, use gloves or another barrier if available, place a clean dressing or cloth over the wound, and press firmly and steadily. Keep pressure on the wound until the bleeding stops or trained help takes over. If an object is stuck in the wound, do not pull it out; get adult and emergency help.
A tourniquet can be lifesaving in some severe bleeding emergencies, but it needs correct training. For Grades 5–6, the key action is direct pressure while getting expert help. Use a tourniquet only if you have been trained or an emergency professional instructs you.
Burns and Scalds
A burn can come from heat, hot liquid, electricity, chemicals, or other causes. First make sure the source of danger is removed or switched off without putting yourself at risk.
For a simple heat burn or scald, cool the area under cool running water for about 20 minutes. Do not use ice, butter, toothpaste, oil, or greasy creams. Remove jewellery or loose clothing near the burn only if it is not stuck to the skin. After cooling, protect the area loosely with a clean, non-fluffy, non-stick covering. Get an adult to help decide what medical care is needed.
Large or deep burns, burns on sensitive areas, electrical or chemical burns, and burns linked with breathing difficulty need urgent medical attention. Do not burst blisters.
Choking
Choking happens when something blocks the airway. A person with a partial blockage may still be able to cough, speak, or breathe. Encourage a strong cough and stay nearby.
A person with a severe blockage may be unable to speak, cough effectively, or breathe. This is an emergency. Call for help immediately. If you have been properly trained, first aid for a conscious adult or child over one year usually uses up to five back blows followed by up to five abdominal thrusts, repeating as needed until the object comes out or the person becomes unresponsive. The method is different for babies.
Do not practise back blows or abdominal thrusts on classmates. Use a training manikin and a qualified instructor. If the choking person becomes unresponsive, emergency services and CPR are needed.
Sprains, Possible Fractures, and Nosebleeds
For a possible broken bone, keep the injured part as still as possible and get adult or medical help. Do not try to straighten the limb. If there is serious bleeding, loss of feeling, a badly changed shape, or a major accident, treat it as urgent.
For a mild sprain, rest the injured area and ask an adult to help. A cold pack wrapped in cloth may reduce pain and swelling. Never place ice directly on bare skin.
For a nosebleed, sit down, lean slightly forward, and pinch the soft part of the nose just above the nostrils. Keep steady pressure for 10 to 15 minutes while breathing through the mouth. Get medical help if the bleeding is heavy, follows a serious injury, causes breathing trouble or faintness, or does not stop.
First Aid Kit Basics
A school, sports club, home, or vehicle may have a first aid kit. Useful items can include disposable gloves, sterile gauze, adhesive plasters, bandages, medical tape, a cold pack, scissors, and a first-aid guide.
Knowing where the kit is stored is as important as knowing what is inside. Tell an adult when supplies are used so that the kit can be restocked. Do not take or give medicine from a kit unless a responsible adult says it is appropriate and safe for the person.
Key Words
Airway means the path air travels through the mouth or nose into the lungs. Breathing is moving air in and out of the lungs. Conscious means awake and aware. Unresponsive means a person does not react when you speak or gently tap them. Dressing is clean material placed on a wound. Emergency dispatcher is the trained person who answers an emergency call and gives instructions. AED means automated external defibrillator.
Reliable Safety Sources
This course is based on widely used first-aid principles. For current guidance and formal training, use trusted health and first-aid organisations.
- American Red Cross: First Aid Steps: Check, call, and care guidance.
- American Red Cross: Life-Threatening External Bleeding: Direct-pressure guidance for severe bleeding.
- American Red Cross: Adult and Child Choking: Signs and response steps for choking.
- NHS: First Aid: General first-aid advice and emergency guidance.
- NHS: Burns and Scalds: Cooling and medical-care guidance for burns.
- NHS: Nosebleed: First-aid steps for common nosebleeds.
Interactive Tasks
Quiz: Test Your Knowledge
What should you do before approaching an injured person? (Check that the scene is safe) (!Run straight to the person) (!Move the person immediately) (!Look for a first aid kit first)
What is the best first action for heavy external bleeding when it is safe to help? (Press firmly on the wound with a clean dressing) (!Wash the wound for twenty minutes) (!Pull out anything stuck in the wound) (!Ask the person to walk around)
What should you use to cool a simple heat burn? (Cool running water) (!Ice directly on the skin) (!Butter) (!Toothpaste)
What does an AED do? (It checks heart rhythm and gives prompts) (!It measures body temperature) (!It cleans a wound) (!It replaces an ambulance)
What should you do if an unresponsive person is not breathing normally? (Call emergency help and begin CPR if trained or guided) (!Give the person food) (!Wait ten minutes) (!Put the person in a chair)
What can you do when a choking person can still cough strongly? (Encourage the person to keep coughing) (!Give the person water) (!Put fingers into the mouth) (!Ask the person to lie flat)
How should you position yourself during a common nosebleed? (Sit and lean slightly forward) (!Lie flat on your back) (!Lean the head far backward) (!Stand and jump)
What should you do with an object stuck in a serious wound? (Leave it in place and get expert help) (!Pull it out quickly) (!Push it deeper) (!Twist it until it loosens)
Which action is safe for a possible broken bone? (Keep the injured part still) (!Straighten it by force) (!Ask the person to run) (!Massage the injured area hard)
Where should CPR practice take place? (On a training manikin with supervision) (!On a healthy classmate) (!On a sleeping person) (!On anyone who volunteers)
Memory Game
| Airway | Path that lets air move into the lungs |
| Dressing | Clean material placed over a wound |
| AED | Device that checks heart rhythm and gives prompts |
| Recovery position | Side position for an unresponsive person who is breathing normally |
| Dispatcher | Trained person who answers an emergency call |
| Pressure | Firm force used to help control external bleeding |
Drag and Drop
| Match the correct terms. | Topic |
|---|---|
| Scene safety | Look for danger before helping |
| Direct pressure | Help control heavy external bleeding |
| Cool running water | First aid for a simple heat burn |
| Strong coughing | Helpful when a choking person can still cough |
| Training manikin | Safe equipment for CPR practice |
...
Crossword Puzzle
| Safety | What should you check before approaching an emergency? |
| Pressure | What firm action helps control heavy bleeding? |
| Recovery | What kind of position helps an unresponsive person who is breathing normally? |
| Choking | What emergency happens when the airway is blocked? |
| Bandage | What can help secure a dressing? |
| Breathing | What vital function must you check in an unresponsive person? |
LearningApps
Cloze Text
Open-Ended Tasks
Easy
- Emergency Call Practice: With a partner and teacher supervision, role-play an emergency phone call that includes the location, what happened, and whether the person is breathing.
- First Aid Kit Survey: Inspect a school first aid kit with an adult and make a labelled list of five items and what each item is for.
- Safety Spotter: Draw a playground scene with at least five hazards and add a safe action beside each hazard.
- First Aid Vocabulary: Create illustrated flashcards for airway, dressing, AED, recovery position, dispatcher, and pressure.
Standard
- Bleeding Response Poster: Design a poster showing how to get help and use direct pressure safely for heavy external bleeding.
- Burn Safety Comic: Create a six-panel comic showing a safe response to a simple heat burn, including cool running water and actions to avoid.
- Nosebleed Demonstration: Make a short supervised demonstration video using a pretend scenario that shows sitting forward and pinching the soft part of the nose.
- Media Fact Check: Choose one first-aid video in this course, compare it with a trusted first-aid webpage, and write three facts that agree.
Advanced
- Emergency Scenario Script: Write a branching story in which a learner must choose safe actions for a playground injury and explain the consequences of each choice.
- First Aid Interview: Interview a school nurse, trained first aider, paramedic, or certified instructor about the most important skills for young people and summarise the answers.
- CPR Training Reflection: After a supervised manikin session, write a reflection explaining why practice on a manikin is safer and more useful than practising on classmates.
- School Safety Audit: With teacher permission, map the locations of first aid kits, AEDs, emergency exits, and adult helpers in your school and propose one realistic improvement.
Learning Assessment
- Safe Decision Making: Explain how scene safety changes what you should do in two different emergencies, one indoors and one outdoors.
- Emergency Communication: Given a short accident story, write the information you would give an emergency dispatcher and explain why each detail matters.
- Compare First Aid Responses: Compare the correct response to heavy bleeding with the correct response to a heat burn and explain why the first actions are different.
- Breathing Emergency Reasoning: Explain why an unresponsive person who is not breathing normally needs a different response from an unresponsive person who is breathing normally.
- Choking Transfer Task: Describe how you would respond differently when a person can cough strongly and when the person cannot speak, cough effectively, or breathe.
- Kit Design Challenge: Choose six useful items for a classroom first aid kit and justify each choice based on the kinds of injuries that might happen at school.
Evidence of Learning
- Knowledge: You can explain scene safety, emergency calling, recovery position awareness, CPR and AED purpose, bleeding control, burn cooling, choking signs, and common first aid vocabulary.
- Skills: You can role-play an emergency call, choose safe first actions, use direct pressure in a supervised simulation, and show correct decision making without practising dangerous techniques on classmates.
- Products: Your posters, comics, videos, interviews, maps, flashcards, and written explanations show that you can communicate first-aid information clearly.
- Transfer: You can use the same safety ideas in new places such as a sports field, kitchen, classroom, park, or school trip and know when a situation is beyond your level of training.
OERs on the Topic
Linked Learning Areas
First aid connects with health education, biology, physical education, safety education, communication skills, and responsible citizenship. It also introduces careers such as paramedic, nursing, emergency medicine, and school health services.