Incident Reports

What is an incident report? Report on unusual incident or occurrence (usually an accident), but can be something odd or unusual: –a surprise inspection –a classroom disruption (also called a referral) –a collision of skateboarders –an alien landing Is a form of narrative writing –written to explain one’s point of view and story –the writer reflects on his/her experience

Who reads them and why write one? Parents, supervisors, judges or lawyers, teachers, etc. read incident reports for a variety of reasons. Incident reports are written to record an event, “incident” or accident for future evaluation

Parts of an Incident Report (1) 1.Summary –The first paragraph –It summarizes the incident and tells when it took place 2.Description –The “body” paragraphs –Provides more details –Answers: Who? What? When? Where? Why? –Reads like a narrative and covers the incident from very beginning to very end.

Parts of an Incident Report (2) 3.Outcome –Not quite the conclusion –Tells what happened as a result of the incident. –It may repeat part of what was stated in the Discussion. 4.Conclusion –The ending –Tells what has been learned as a result of this experience and what will help prevent another similar incident

Incident of Injury at Tiny Tot Day Care Summary On July 13, 1992, David Smith was bitten by another child at Tiny Tot Day Car. Miss Holland cleaned the wound, and there was no permanent damage. Mrs. Olsen informed both parents of the incident. The report was filed in the permanent records of both children. Description On July 13, 1992, Miss Holland and Mrs. Olsen were supervising a group of 10 children on the playground. At 10:15 a.m., David cried out loudly and ran to Miss Holland. David cried hard enough to give himself hiccups. With tears in his eyes, he showed his arm to Miss Holland. Miss Holland comforted David by picking him up in her arms and holding him. Miss Holland then took David inside to wash the would caused by the bite. While inside, David told Miss Holland who had bitten him. Apparently the other child wanted the wagon David was using. The other child grabbed David and then bit him on the upper right arm. There was no blood, but the skin was slightly broken. The area was cleaned with soap and water and then dried. David returned to the playground but stayed away from the child who had bitten him. Mrs. Olsen and Miss Holland talked to the other child about how much it hurts to be bitten and what he is allowed to bite. Outcome No permanent damage was done to David’s arm. Incident reports were filed in the permanent records of both children. Parents of both children were informed of the incident. Conclusion In the future, both children will be watched more closely. Since biting is a common problem with this age group, it is important to know 1) which children are under stress and therefore more likely to bite and 2) indirect guidance techniques to help eliminate such aggressive behavior. Sample Incident Report:

Your Assignment Using information from Macbeth, write an incident report based on an incident that occurs in Act II of the play. SUMMARY (paragraph one summarizes the incident and tells when it took place 4-5 sentences) DESCRIPTION (Provides more details. It answers the major questions: who, what, when, where, why. It reads like a story and covers the incident from the very beginning to the end sentences) OUTCOMES (Tells what happened as a result of the incident. It may repeat part of what was stated in the Discussion. 3-4 sentences) CONCLUSION (Tells what has been learned as a result of this experience and what will help prevent another similar accident. 2-3 sentences)