Creating the safe way - Future Generations

Our school visits have been ongoing but this year we planned of doing something completely different, involving the children, age group 9-11. The objective was to make them participate and role them in as advocates for road safety. We actually split up our island in three sections were we could have all government schools participating. The scope was were possible to create a school bus where the children together with their teachers will walk to a school outside their village, initiating walking, observing what they are doing. During the walk route, the children were surprised, (all planned) with Traffic Police meeting them along the route and escorted them to school.
On arrival the children had five work stations that they visited and participated whilst recalling an experiences they met on route. The stations were:
A) A simulated accident where the children had the scene of an accident with a car hitting a cyclist, here the children were asked for their comments.
B) 112, the basic and appropriate information to be advices, this was conducted by a Police Officer from the Emergency Unit.
C) Basic First Aid and applying CPR, the children were given the opportunity to practice basic first aid and what to do when on the scene of the accident. D) The benefits of cycling, what to wear, how to behave and the encouragement, here most of the children brought their bicycles to school where they simulated various street scenarios.
E) A talk about Road Safety, the children are given the opportunity to recall their experiences and help them identify the correct safe way to be on the road, passengers in cars.
F) A school bus was taken to school and the children had the opportunity to ride the bus, one would argue this is something that children do every day, but this was different. The driver had the chance to talk to the children, talk about his work driving school children, being safe as a driver and the responsibilities of the children on the bus. The driver explained to them the vision difficulty when children get off the bus, giving the children that extra responsibility to help and support their bus driver.

Another objective we gave children in their home villages and towns is to chart a safe walking way to school, the children were provided with maps and they had to mark on the map the route they took. They also had to note down any regularities they met on the road. Their comments were then discussed at school. We are now asking the children to talk to their local village council to meet up and discuss any recommendations they would like in their towns and villages.

This exercise has given a different perspective to road safety because now the children are participating in not just being safe but creating a safe way.