Now Is A Good Time To Remind Your Kids Of Safety Rules When Walking To And From School

A student in Plainville was seriously injured after they were struck by a vehicle while crossing the road at a crosswalk.  This type of accident happens everyday and it is a good reminder for us to continually be talking to our kids about being safe when walking to and from school.

With a large number of New Haven students walking to and from their schools in the morning and afternoon there are plenty of opportunities for a New Haven pedestrian accident to occur.  However, this type of incident does not have to be a foregone conclusion.  All year round it is important that we are talking to our kids about how to stay safe walking to school, but it is particularly important over the next few weeks.  With the holidays coming up and students having been in school since September there is likely to be a real lack of attention being paid to things like safety rules so now is a good time to remind kids.

As a way to make it easier for you, we have made a list of five things that you can simply remind your kids about over the next few weeks to make sure they are staying safe on their walks to and from school.

1. Always cross at a crosswalk.  While the student who was injured in Plainville was actually in a crosswalk it remains the safest place to cross at any intersection.
2. Stay on the sidewalks.  There may be situations where you don’t have sidewalks when walking to school, but in most cases, when there are sidewalks, your child should always use them.
3. Walk facing forward.  This is especially important when your child is walking with a group of her/his friends and they are all chatting.   It can be tempting for a child to turn and walk backwards to continue the conversation, but that can be a recipe for disaster.
4. Obey the crossing guard.  If there is an intersection where your child is lucky enough to find a crossing guard, they should always wait for instructions from the crossing guard before stepping out into the street.
5. Walk with a buddy.  You’ve heard the expression, four eyes are better then two, this goes for when your child is walking.  If she/he has a buddy that they can walk to school with it will make staying safe significantly easier.

The holiday season is of particular concern when reminding your kids of the rules of walking to and from school, but another season is almost here too that can have dangerous implications for our kids and that is winter.  Don’t stop reviewing these safety tips to help your kids avoid a New Haven pedestrian accident once the New Year hits, you should be reminding them of these safety tips during the whole school year.

We wish you and your family a safe and healthy holiday season.