Growing up, we had fire drills and that was it. Lockdown drills were never something we had to think about.
However, today, lockdown drills are commonplace in many schools, especially those in the US. We do these types of drills here in Canada as well, but I'm not entirely sure if they are a thing elsewhere in the world.
Regardless, lockdown drills can be anxiety inducing for a lot of kids. And many kids need support when it comes to understanding these types of emergency drills.
You can use these free social stories for lockdown drills to help these kids understand what they are, what to do during one, and what to expect.
For a sensitive topic like this, it's best to write your own social story if you can. Just use the stories below as inspiration! Ideally, you want a story that is personalized to your school's procedures. But these stories can work in a pinch if need be.
Free Social Stories for Lockdown Drills
Have you been looking for a lockdown drill social story? Then look no further than these free lockdown social story printables. Some require you to have a Teachers Pay Teachers account (which is free!) before you can download them.
I've rounded up some options for you to explore. That way you can find the best lockdown social story for you and your child. Or you can simply use ideas from the different stories below to write your own custom story (free social story templates here to help).
Please note that just because a social story is listed here does not mean I endorse its content. After all, many social stories tend to be poorly written and/or teach autistic masking. Besides, I haven't read all of these stories word for word myself. So please read through the stories carefully before using them with your child.
1. Lockdown Drills & School Safety Social Story from Mrs. Glasgo on TPT - This story doubles up as a coloring book. It uses simple text and black and white clipart to color in. It's geared towards K-2 students.
2. Social Story for Lockdown & Active Shooter Drills from Breezy Special Ed on TPT - Here is a one page social story with symbols/icons to support the text. For some kids, all of these icons might be beneficial, but for others, they might be super distracting. I personally find these kinds of stories hard/annoying to read. They're kind of like those Geronimo Stilton books. I hate those books.
3. Basic Social Story for Lockdown/Safety Drill by Ms. Monahan's Resources on TPT - A single page poster, most than a story per se. It uses a mix of clipart and colorful icon style images.
4. Social Story: Lockdown Drill from Simple SpEd Solutions on TPT - This two page story looks pretty simplistic. It includes a mix of some photos and some colorful clipart.
5. Lockdown Drill Social Story from Carrie Ogram on TPT - This story appears to use some photos, but looks like it primarily uses colorful clipart/icons.
6. What to Do During a Lockdown Drill from Kathy Kaminski on TPT - This story focuses on what to do during a lockdown drill. It looks like it might be fairly detailed and use some random images.
7. Active Intruder/Shooter Drill Social Story from Skye Beckley on TPT - This story uses colorful clipart and icon style images. It's designed to remind kids that these drills are just to practice for emergencies.
8. Code Red Social Narrative from Autism Educators on TPT - This story was written by a teacher who lives in Parkland, Florida. In it, she talks about what "Code Red" means in their school district and what to do during a lockdown. The story uses colorful images with some diversity shown.
9. Lockdown Drill Social Story from Social Stories: Power Tool for Autism - This story is text only, but it outlines what to expect during one of these emergency drills.
10. Secure & Hold Drill at School from Social Stories: Power Tool for Autism - Here's another text only story that briefly discusses fire drills as well as secure and hold drills, which are another variation of a lockdown drill.
11. Shelter-in-Place Lockdown Drill at School from Social Stories: Power Tool for Autism - Another text only story. This one looks identical to the one above. It just swapped the secure and hold for shelter in place.
Video Songs & Social Stories About Lockdown Drills at School
Here are a couple of video social stories and songs that talk about what a lockdown drill is and what to expect. You can use these in a classroom setting or at home to prepare a child for an upcoming lockdown drill. Videos are always a great alternative to printing off a story.
Like the school lockdown stories above though, some of the wording in these videos aren't always great. But I wanted to make sure you had lots of different options for discussing lockdowns with your child.
Hopefully, the free printable and video social stories for lockdown drills above are helpful for you, your child, or your students. Remember, it's always best to try and write your own so you can customize it to your school's particular procedures. All schools are different, after all.
