Now, lots of kids already walk to RFES, but many don't. We know that parents' work schedules are often an obstacle to walking their kids to school, or that many parents are uncomfortable with letting their children walk to school without adult supervision. These are common issues and completely understandable, yet there are many important benefits to our children and to our community in having kids walk to school (learn more about the benefits of walking to school at the bottom of this article). Helping to overcome these obstacles is what this community-led initiative is all about.
Enter The Walking School Bus
In order to provide the opportunity for kids who are typically driven to school to experience the benefits and joys of walking , we're organizing "walking school buses" for Walk To School Day on the morning of Wednesday, October 5th. Walking school buses are groups of school children walking together along designated routes, accompanied by parents who volunteer as chaperons - in essence, the walking school bus "drivers." Even kids and parents who already walk, but who want to join in the fun are welcome to walk with the groups! Here's a 3-minute video about walking school buses:
So, how does it work?
The concept is actually pretty straightforward. Walking school buses are enabled by parent volunteers to act as chaperons and "drive" each of the walking school buses. There are typically 2 or 3 parents - one at the front, one at the back, and one on the side if needed - for each walking school bus to accompany their respective group. The group walks along a designated route through the neighborhood to school, picking up kids along the way, just like a real school bus.
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| A walking school bus |
Each of the colored lines represents a different walking school bus route, and the yellow dots represent the location of a "corner captain." Corner captains are additional volunteers who help increase the visibility of pedestrian activity in the neighborhood and help with crossings.
How can I volunteer as a Walking School Bus chaperon or corner captain?
If you would like to volunteer as a walking school bus chaperon or a corner captain, you can do so in one of the following ways:
1.Send an e-mail ASAP with your name, address, and phone number to SRTS committee chair Stu Sirota at stusirota@verizon.net.
2. Fill out and return the paper slip provided in your child's red folder on Monday, September 26th.
If you send an e-mail, please indicate which color route you would like to chaperon or at what corner you would like to stand. Volunteers will be contacted prior to October 5th to receive or confirm assignments.
Walking school buses will start from their point of origins at 8:30 AM and proceed to RFES along their designated routes and arrive at the school by 8:45.
How can my child participate?
If you would like for your child or children to participate in the walking school bus, please wait with them at a point along the route - either at the sidewalk in front of your house or the nearest street corner - for the walking school bus group to arrive before leaving your child. Groups will start out at 8:30 AM so please be outside early enough so that your child doesn't "miss the bus!" Remember, the walking school buses are only happening on the morning of Walk to School Day, and NOT in the afternoon.
Participation is, of course, purely voluntary and no registration is required, however if you would like your child to participate, we would appreciate it if you would send us an email to the aforementioned e-mail address with the number and age of children who will be walking, your address, and the COLOR route of the walking school bus your child will walk with, for our planning purposes.
What else is going on during the event?
In addition to the walking school buses, the Baltimore County Police Department will have uniformed officers and squad cars in the vicinity of RFES on Walk to School Day and will be talking to students about walk safety as they arrive at the school. The police may even give out some fun safety materials to the kids.
We hope to organize regular walking school buses throughout the school year if there is interest, and perhaps even "Bicycle Trains" next spring! Even if that means your child gets to walk to school once a week or a few times a month, the benefits of doing so can be immense.
So just what are the benefits of walking to school, anyway?
- Consider the following:
- Walking is great exercise for you and your child. If done regularly, even for 10 to 15 minutes, it can improve your health, your circulation and your mental concentration. And it can help you and your kid stay in shape and keep extra pounds off. Increased levels of daily physical activity for children:
- Builds and maintains healthy bones, muscles, and joints.
- Helps control weight, build lean muscle and reduce fat.
- Improves sense of self-image and autonomy.
- Fosters healthy social and emotional development.
- Improves academic performance and alertness.
- Walking improves personal safety and community cohesion. By walking, your child will learn about safety in the street and how to navigate traffic. Your child will also get to know the surroundings and the neighborhood better. By having more kids walking, drivers become more accustomed to pedestrian activity and tend to drive more cautiously. Also, having more pedestrian activity in the neighborhood increases “eyes on the street” and reduces the likelihood of crime. Walking kids to school also fosters friendlier neighborhoods as kids and parents interact with one another and socialize on a daily basis.
- Walking children to school helps families spend more quality time together. Our lives are so hectic, and many of us wish we could just "stop and smell the roses," especially with our kids. Your daily walk to and from school can be a good time to talk with your child and share experiences about their day and the world around them.
- Walking helps reduce traffic congestion. More walkers means fewer cars traveling through the neighborhood. Fewer cars means less congestion in the pick-up and drop-off points at the school and further improves safety for pedestrians and drivers. Walking to school also increases the likelihood that children and adults will choose to walk and bike for other short distance trips.
- Walking is better for the environment and the air our children breathe. Reducing the number of vehicular pick-up and drop-offs each day can have a dramatic impact on improving the quality of air around the school. Vehicle emissions are the leading cause of childhood asthma. Also, if a family chooses to walk to school (rather than drive a personal vehicle) they can reduce their carbon footprint by .164 metric tons annually. If half of the students at an average size elementary school choose to walk to school their impact could be a savings of over 39 tons of greenhouse gas emissions a year. This is the equivalent of the carbon-removing abilities of 1000 trees. Leaving the car at home just two days a week will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by an average of 1,600 pounds per year.
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