Where's the "Safe" in "Safe Routes"?
Safety is a major concern for parents and schools alike when encouraging children to walk to school, and education plays an integral role in promoting safety and planning truly safe routes to school. By educating children and other community members about the real and perceived dangers while walking or rolling to school, they are empowered to be safe in neighborhoods and on the streets.
There are great materials and guides that address many of the common safety concerns that parents and educators may have regarding safe routes.
Looking for Curriculum?
The Transportation and Land Use Coalition (TALC) offers two comprehensive curricula for grade school children. Contact TALC directly for these materials at either (510) 740-3150 or SR2S@transcoalition.org.
Safe Routes in Marin County provides lesson plans for safety, environment, and nutritional/fitness education for grades K through 12 and are downloadable as PDFs.
The State of Maryland provides a teacher's resource guide on growth and communities and has lesson plans focusing on "Healthy Community ... Healthy You." It provides a wealth of background information on the effects of an active lifestyle on health and has great links to other relevant resources.
The Center for Disease Control (CDC) provides a lesson plan and PowerPoint presentation that can be given to schools, neighborhoods, or community groups to promote walking to school as a part of the CDC's KidsWalk-to-School program, including community presentations and talking points as well as.
The National Center for Safe Routes to Schools provides a wealth of information regarding education, including strategies on how to reach children, parents, drivers, and neighbors, as well as tips on how children and adults learn best. They have resources on pedestrian and bicycle safety, personal safety, and the health and environment. The Center also provides case studies regarding education, including how a school in Maryland now provides 7,000 elementary students with bicycle and pedestrian safety education.
Walk Boston is a non-profit membership organization dedicated to improving walking conditions in cities and towns in Massachusetts. They're very active in Safe Routes to School efforts and have created some of the most comprehensive curriculum for Safe Routes to School. See their website for walking curriculum and an entire toolkit on how to start a Safe Routes program.
Portland Safe Routes to School Program Curriculum from the City of Portland has a well developed Safe Routes Website with sections for Teachers, Kids and Young Drivers, and Parents. While the curricular materials are written for an urban context and designed to address the Oregon state standards, many of them have a have a strong environmental or civic engagement component which is readily transferable to local situations.
Want to encourage walking, biking, and rolling to school?
How can we best encourage students to walk, bike, or skate to school? Get them doing it! The best way to motivate students is to incentivize behavior that promotes safe routes programs and practices - walking, rolling, and bussing to school - and de-incentivizing behavior that doesn't promote those practices.
Walk to School Day events are a great way to get kids walking and biking to school. International Walk to School Day is a great time to kick of Safe Routes program. Usually occurring in October, kids can join thousands of other children across the world in walking or biking to school for a day. This site offers everything you'll need to have a successful Walk to School Day. A variety of encouragement activities can be found on the International Walk to School Day's Resources webpage, as well as press release templates, detailed instructions for teachers, parents, and others, as well as checklists to ensure you have everything you need. Other resources include printable stickers, tips on how students can engage local elected officials, symbolically trot around the world, or even how they can use the local radio station to promote walking to school. Watch for great Arcata International Walk to School Day events in 2008!
Walking School Buses or Bicycle Trains are groups of students, accompanied by one or more adults, who all walk and/or bike to school together. Often parents are the providers for Walking School Buses, although other partner organizations may help initial organizing efforts.
Transportation Land Use Coalition has a great Walking School Bus Toolkit.
The National Safe Routes Institute has a truly comprehensive Walking School Bus and Bicycle Train website that offers information on program structure, evaluation tools, and case studies.
"Active and Safe Routes to Schools," a Green Communities program in Canada, has a great Walking School Bus Toolkit including an adaptable form letter that can be sent home to parents, informing them of Walking School Buses, and a step-by-step guide to creating them in communities, as well as suggested community partners.
Riding the bus helps create safe routes too!
Not all children can walk or roll to school, but many can walk or roll to the bus stop. According to the National Safety Council, school busses are 172 times safer than private automobiles1 and their use reduces parking lot congestion, which then reduces the risk of pedestrian injury and improves air quality by lowering emissions. Children who walk to the bus not only gain the health benefits of walking and the civic benefits of getting to know their neighborhood, they're developing life skills around using public transit.
Kids, the School Bus, and You, from the National Highway Safety Administration (NHTSA), is a one page handout covering bus safety for auto drivers, children, and parents. Providing this handout at the beginning of the school year can help families unfamiliar with bus safety issues start the year right.
Contests are a great way to encourage walking, rolling, and bussing school. Safe Routes in Marin County offers comprehensive ideas for contests, including "Greening the Trees," a "Frequent Rider Miles" program, and art contests.
Want to promote your education and encouragement activities in the press? Interested in graphics and stickers to use on letters, flyers, and posters? Visit our Resources page!