L - Curriculum Information Sheet

What can you
do to protect
teen workers
in your
district?

Why do youth
get hurt, sick,
or killed on
the job?

Use the free, Youth@Work: Talking
Safety curriculum (from the National
Institute for Occupational Safety and
Health - NIOSH) to give your students
the vital work readiness skills they
need to stay safe and healthy on the
job now –and throughout their lives.

Teens work in a variety of industries,
from food service to farming. They get
hurt at twice the rate of adult workers.
Employers are responsible for making
workplaces safe. But teens often lack
proper supervision, safety awareness,
and training.

Make Youth@Work: Talking Safety
part of the school health and work
readiness programs in your district.

True Stories:

Teens are at increased risk
for injury and death
on the job.
Every minute, a young person in the
United States is injured on the job.

•	 17-year-old Darnell lost a finger
in a food shredder at a fast food
restaurant.
•	 16-year-old Maria was robbed
and assaulted at gunpoint while
working alone at a clothing shop.

Youth are twice as likely as adults to
get hurt at work. The numbers are
likely much higher, because injury
data for workers under age 15 are
unavailable.
By the time they finish high school,
80% of U.S. teens have held a job.
But the vast majority of them enter
the work force unprepared for the
challenges-and hazards-they face.

A free, fun, and fast curriculum
for middle and high schools

Work readiness
skills to keep young
people safe and healthy
•	 15-year-old Katie suffered a severe
burn while working as a barista.
•	 14-year-old Wayne died after
falling into a feed grinder while
working on a farm.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Institute for Occupational Safety vand Health (NIOSH)

Tragedies at work don’t have to happen.
Help young people get the skills they
need to stay safe and healthy on the job!

Bring Talking Safety to school today.
Save a life tomorrow.

Skills for safe and healthy work are
vital to college and career readiness.

What is Talking Safety?

Does Talking Safety work?

It contributes to
academic performance

Talking Safety is a free, interactive,
curriculum that teaches essential work
readiness skills to middle and high school
students. These skills will help them stay
safe and healthy, now and throughout
their lives.

Yes! The curriculum was extensively
pilot tested in 16 high schools across
the United States. It was shown to
increase students’ knowledge of
workplace safety and health and
gave them vital skills for protecting
themselves on the job.

Studies show that when a teen is
hurt on the job, s/he can experience
the negative impact on academic
performance. Keeping youth healthy
and safe on the job is crucial to helping
them succeed in the classroom.

It fits into your school health
and work readiness programs

The curriculum helps students to:

It’s easy to teach
Talking Safety

•	 Receive vital work readiness skills
they can use in any workplace, now
and in the future.
•	 Increase their awareness of
workplace safety risks and hazards.
•	 Communicate with employers
andprotect themselves from job
hazards.
•	 Know their rights and responsibilities
on the job.
•	 Have a positive and active attitude
toward workplace safety and health.
•	 Know how to respond to emergencies
on the job.

The curriculum gives you
everything you need:
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11 flexible, 45-minute lesson plans.
Detailed teachers’ tips.
PowerPoint slides and handouts.
Interactive games.
Resources for your state.
Certificate of completion.
A 13-minute companion video.

Talking Safety is aligned with the Center
for Diseases Control and Prevention’s
(CDC’s) National Health Education
Standards (NHES) and incorporates
the characteristics of effective health
education curricula.
You can also use Talking Safety in career
education/work readiness programs,
internship programs, and in other
training situations for young workers.
The curriculum aligns with the goals
and standards of the National Career
Clusters® Initiative and the Common
Career Technical Core. It is supported
by the National Association of
State
Directors
Career
Technical
Skills
for safeofand
healthy
work are
Education
Consortium
(NASDCTEc).
vital to college and career readiness