Thursday, August 27, 2015

Teaching Kids How to Walk Safely

Hard to believe but school starts next week!

If your child walks to school, now would be a good time to review with her/him how to safely walk to school.  The below tips are provided by our partners in safety SafeKids.
  • Teach kids at an early age to look left, right and left again before crossing the street. Then remind them to continue looking around until safely across.

  • It’s always best to walk on sidewalks or paths and cross at street corners, using traffic signals and crosswalks. If there are no sidewalks, walk facing traffic as far to the left as possible.

  • Teach kids to make eye contact with drivers before crossing the street.

  • Children under 10 need to cross the street with an adult. Every child is different, but developmentally, most kids are unable to judge the speed and distance of oncoming cars until age 10.

  • Encourage kids to be especially alert for cars that are turning or backing up.

  • Teach kids not to run or dart out into the street or cross between parked cars.

  • If kids are walking when it’s dark out, teach them to be especially alert and make sure they are visible to drivers. Have them wear light- or brightly-colored clothing and reflective gear.

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