What could have been done differently? - disasters social studies activities

Use the topics in the Disasters category of NZHistory.net.nz  for the following activity ideas. 

Disasters such as these always involve an element of apportioning blame:

• Who was at fault?
• What could have prevented this happening?
• If only we had known…

What do we learn from these events to reduce the likelihood or minimise the impact of a similar event in the future?

Choose one of the disasters from NZHistory.net and write two paragraphs of between 6 and 8 lines to answer the following questions:

• What could people have done differently to prevent or minimise the impact of this disaster?
• What lessons were learnt as a result of this disaster in terms of coping with major disasters?