Safe Schooling

As moms, we worry about our children’s safety when they go out into the world on their own. No matter how your kids get to school—either by bus, bike, skateboard, walking, or a warm car, our enthusiastic back-to-schoolers need to be street smart and traffic aware.

Tucked away behind Glenmore Pool in the SW is a place called Safety City.

Safety City offers a program geared toward 4 to 6 year-olds, set in a fun learning environment that includes a miniature city with crosswalks, streets, traffic lights, train tracks and classrooms. The program consists of two parts, and starts indoors with children learning the signs and lights of the roads, as well as the proper method to safely cross the street. The second half of the program sees them going outside into the miniature city and taking turns practicing being both a pedestrian and a safe ‘driver’ on their tricycles. As it is Safety City, all participants must bring their own bike helmet from home.

If you can’t get to Safety City, invite them to come to you. Simon the Safety Bear and an instructor will come to your preschool, kindergarten or grade one class and teach the kids about pedestrian, bike, home and personal safety. It’s not every day that friendly bears get to visit the classroom.

For kids that are walking and biking on their own, Child Safe Canada offers the courses Strangers and Dangers (ages 4 to 8, and includes one parent guardian) and Street Smart Kids (ages 6 to 11) in different locations in Calgary throughout the year. The courses teach what to do if they need help or get lost, and introduce the stranger danger concept in a non-threatening manner. Cost is $30 for two hours.

Finally, the Alberta Motor Association sponsors the school safety patrol for a number of primary schools across Calgary. Each year, hundreds of volunteer grade five and six students provide road-crossing assistance to their fellow students before and after school. AMA boasts that there have been no serious injuries while patrollers were on duty—a fact to be truly thankful for!

Remember, tomorrow is your reward for safe actions today. Tested by Fiona H., Calgary

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