Downriver Today

AUGUST is Back to School Safety Month! We are 3 weeks from school starting (September 6th)

Here are some tips to help everyone prepare for the return of school. 

Transportation Safety:

Whether children walk, ride their bicycle or take the bus to school, it is extremely important that they take proper safety precautions. Here are some tips to make sure your child safely travels to school:

* Walking to school:

- Review your family’s walking safety rules and practice walking to school with your child

- Walk on the sidewalk, if one is available; when on a street with no sidewalk, walk facing the traffic

- Before you cross the street, stop and look left, right and left again to see if cars are coming

- Make eye contact with drivers before crossing and always cross streets at crosswalks or intersections

- Stay alert and avoid distracted walking

* Riding a bicycle to school:

- Teach your child the rules of the road and practice riding the bike route to school with your child

- Ride on the right side of the road, with traffic, and in single file

- Come to a complete stop before crossing the street; walk bikes across the street

- Stay alert and avoid distracted riding

- Make sure your child always wears a properly fitted helmet and bright clothing

* Riding the bus to school:

- Teach your children school bus safety rules and practice with them

- Go to the bus stop with your child to teach them the proper way to get on and off the bus

- Teach your children to stand six feet (or 3 giant steps) away from the curb

- If your child must cross the street in front of the bus, teach him or her to walk on the side of the road until they are 10 feet ahead of the bus; your child and the bus driver should always be able to see each other

* Driving your child to school:

- Stay alert and avoid distracted driving

- Obey school zone speed limits and follow your school’s drop-off procedure (PLEASE READ THIS TWICE)

- Make eye contact with children who are crossing the street

* School Safety:

- Many school-related injuries are completely preventable. Follow these steps to ensure your child’s safety at school:

- Preventing backpack-related injuries

- Choose a backpack for your child carefully; it should have ergonomically designed features to enhance safety and comfort

- Ask your child to use both straps when wearing their backpack to evenly distribute the weight on their shoulders

- Don’t overstuff a backpack; it should weigh no more than 5 to 10 percent of your child’s body weight

- Rolling backpacks should be used cautiously since they can create a trip hazard in crowded school - hallways

- Preventing playground-related injuries

- To reduce strangulation hazards on playgrounds, have your child leave necklaces and jackets with drawstrings at home

Original source can be found here.