The idea
A Walking School Bus is a group of children walking to school with adult supervision. It's very simple and that’s part of its beauty. It can be as informal as two families taking turns walking their children to school or as structured as a route with meeting points, a timetable and a regularly rotated schedule of volunteers.
Typically it comprises two volu...
The idea
A Walking School Bus is a group of children walking to school with adult supervision. It's very simple and that’s part of its beauty. It can be as informal as two families taking turns walking their children to school or as structured as a route with meeting points, a timetable and a regularly rotated schedule of volunteers.
Typically it comprises two volunteer parents, one to “drive” and one to “conduct” a group of school children. They then follow a set route to school, collecting pupils at “bus stops” along the way. The flexibility of the walking school bus makes it appealing to communities of all sizes with varying needs. Safety concerns are often the primary reason that parents are reluctant to allow their children to walk to school. Providing adult supervision may help reduce those worries for families who live within walking distance to school.
Reasons to do it
Studies show that fewer children are walking and cycling to school and more children are at risk of becoming overweight. Changing behaviours of children and parents require creative solutions that are safe and fun and implementing a walking school bus can be both!
- It provides a safe and environmentally friendly way for children to travel to school
- Children learn good road sense and it encourages children to start the “walking” habit hopefullys stay with them for the rest of their lives
- Improved fitness through daily exercise
- It’s fun and promotes social development and independence
- Working in a rota parents save time when other people escort their children to school
- Children use up excess energy before lessons start which helps them to focus in class
- Less cars means reduces traffic and fumes near the school
How to get involved
Time: It will take 4/5 hours to initially set this up and then parents can take it in turns to accompany children to school each day.A successful Walking School Bus can be set up by a group of interested parents and will need the support and input of school staff, local road safety staff and gardaí.
