Epileptic in Pre-K?

[CallMeSam]

A friend of mine is a Pre-K teacher and has recently gained an Epileptic student. He has seizures -- at least Grand Mal that she knows of -- and has said he gets them if he "hit's his head".
Obviously she won't treat him different than an every-day 4 year old, but she would like to know if there are any special signs she should watch for, anything she needs to know for emergency situations and just how to handle it if he has one.
She's never seen me have a seizure and hasn't had to deal with them. I was hoping that with the wealth of knowledge and experience there is on this forum that someone might have some tips for her.

 

[Nakamova]

First of all, she should discuss the situation with the parent to see if there are any signs to watch out for, or special instructions to follow once a seizure starts. She should have the parental contact info handy. Other than that, the standard rules apply:

What to Do if Your Child Has an Epileptic Seizure
Most epileptic seizures are over so quickly that you don't really have much time to do anything. After it's over, you simply make sure that the child wasn't injured.

Tonic-clonic seizures are the most dramatic and frightening of the seizures, and they usually last longer than other seizures. Here are some suggestions for handling them:
-- Move things out of the way so the child won't injure him or herself.
-- Loosen any tight clothing around the neck.
-- Put a pillow or something soft under the head.
-- Lay him or her on one side.
-- Time the seizure.

Call an ambulance about a seizure if:
-- The child was injured during the seizure.
-- The child may have inhaled water.
-- The seizure lasted longer than five minutes.
-- There is no known history of seizures.

Things not to do during a seizure:

Don't put anything in the mouth. First of all, despite what you've heard, it's impossible to swallow your tongue and choke. While the child may bite his or her tongue during a seizure, trying to cram something in the mouth probably won't work to prevent this. You may also get bitten, or you may break some of the child's teeth.
Don't try to hold the child down. People, even children, have remarkable muscular strength during seizures. Trying to pin a child with a seizure to the ground isn't easy and it won't do any good anyway.
Don't give mouth-to-mouth resuscitation until the seizure is over. After the seizure has ended, give mouth-to-mouth resuscitation if the person is not breathing.
Don't call an ambulance during a typical seizure. For a lot of people, the first response to seeing a seizure is to call 911. But for the vast majority of seizures, that isn't necessary. It's also frightening for a child to spend an afternoon in the hospital unnecessarily. Instead, only call for medical help if the child is injured during the seizure, if a seizure lasts more than five minutes, or if it seems like one seizure is immediately following the previous one.

If there's an assistant in the class, she should make sure the assistant also knows what to do.

There are also some books about epilepsy targeted for kids as young as 4. She might consider using them in class.