COVID-19 ESCAPE ROOM: Staying Safe amidst a pandemic - 9 Challenges, Student Workbook, Answer Key and Resources

Using an Escape Room to develop curriculum knowledge is an exciting activity that will inspire learners from 2nd Grade to 6th Grade.

The curriculum content of this Escape Room is linked to:

• Developing the students’ knowledge of COVID-19
• Where the virus came from
• How fast it spread across the globe
• How it is spread from person to person
• How students can keep themselves and others safe

The aim of the Escape Room is to provide jeopardy for the children to work under pressure to solve 9 challenges to help raise their knowledge and safer behaviour linked to COVID-19. As lockdowns ease, and students start returning to school, sports clubs, theatres and malls, the challenge of staying safe becomes ever greater. We have produced this Escape Room to make the learning of staying safe exciting, enjoyable and stimulating. The final challenge makes the learning meaningful with the students having to plan a “COVID SAFE” school dance.

The 9 Challenges within this Escape Room will support knowledge and understanding of the COVID virus and help our students thrive within this “new normal”.

Before beginning, you will need to prepare the following:

• A copy of the Pupil Workbook for each group
• A set of table team names for every group – prepared beforehand and given to each group to set up their own working space
• IT sources and research materials
• Initial Starting Script sharing the problem to the children
• Completion Script celebrating the completion of the challenge

Children do not need prior knowledge of COVID-19 to complete this Escape Room so is suitable for a starter challenge to a new topic. The ability to have access to research resources will support the answers. This Escape Room is ideal as a review of learning to identify what the children have learnt and retained as a result of completing the study unit of virus’ within science.

The activity begins by the teacher reader the Initial Message received. It clearly tells the children that they are required to stay safe now that they are starting to come back to school and able to go out with friends to different places. However, it makes it clear that the risk of contracting COVID-19 is still a risk and this Escape Room will see if they are ready to go out and be safe! The accurate completion of each challenges enables the students to move from one challenge to another. They must complete each challenge correctly before moving onto the next challenge, continuing the Escape Room collecting all nine!

After the 9th activity – the teacher can read the final script which reviews the learning the children have undertaken as they have completed each of the challenges. This script, together with team labels and the opening challenge script are contained within the Resource Pack.

Each activity focuses and builds the student’s knowledge of COVID-19

The 9 activities are based on the following outcomes:

• Word Search to introduce 25 key words related to COVID-19 ensuring that children develop a wide vocabulary. There is also an extra hidden word which the children must find in order to solve the Code Key and move to the next challenge.
• Crossword to complete which introduces further important information to the children – there are 12 clues to solve.
• Linking key words with their definitions (13 words)
• The first 25 countries who confirmed COVID-19 cases in the first month of 2020
• Plotting the first 25 countries on a world map and seeing the link to their positions based on the first known confirmed cases
• Symptoms of COVID-19 – labelling a human body
• Washing hands to your own choice of music – drama presentation to successfully achieve this challenge!
• Problem Solving – use all the skills, knowledge and information to plan a “COVID SAFE” school dance for students to attend thinking about the steps needed to be taken to keep everyone safe, why those steps are important and how it would ensure COVID spread is reduced.

When all 9 activities are completed, and the children have gained the correct Code Keys from each activity, the final celebratory script can be read which reviews the learning and informs the children that they have been successful and can leave the Escape Room!

Setting up the Escape Room

1. Children should be split into groups of no more than four and be placed in their own workspace.

2. Access to IT and research materials should be provided to allow children to research answers to questions and review their own knowledge, as well as checking answers.

3. Each group should have a Code Key Booklet and decide on a team name

4. Read the Initial Message to the children to set the challenge in context. Discuss what this means, and what the activity entails.

5. Turn to Code Key 1. Agree with the children a set time to complete the problem in – this ensures that the children stay on task and maintains the Escape Room element of working under pressure.

6. At the end of the time, children should have filled in the Code Key in their booklet. The teacher can then check the accuracy of all the groups and talk through the responses the children should have.

7. Move on through the remaining challenges until all 10 have been completed.

8. For those groups who have been successful, they are then able to read the completed statement where they find out if they have escaped the Escape Room!

There are other ways of running Escape Room activities, for example, each activity could be set up on 9 tables and the children then move from table to table completing the activity. This would reduce the need for as many resources, and access to non-fiction sources and Internet Resources could then be targeted at specific Challenges.

The Escape Room should last for at least 2 hours.

We hope that your children enjoy this Escape Room.

Thank you for visiting our store.

Best wishes

INSPIReducation