Plan Your Event
Walk to (or at) School Day is not a one-size, fits all event. With celebrations occurring across the world, Walk to School Day activities vary from school to school, state to state and even country to country. Following are a number of ways your school can participate in the festivities!
nrg Walks Challenge
The nrg Walks Challenge is a school–wide competition that encourages classroom teachers to get their students walking during International Walk to School Week, with the chance to compete for prizes. To plan your nrg Walks Challenge, visit www.nrgbalance.org/nrgwalks.cfm.
Walking School Bus
It’s not bright yellow, it doesn’t have tires, and it doesn’t require a drop of gasoline. In fact, it’s powered by the energy and enthusiasm of neighborhood schoolchildren.
Created for students who live within walking distance of their school, a Walking School Bus is simply a group of students who walk to school along a set route making “bus stops” to pick up more students along the way. The “bus” includes a trained adult supervisor who acts as the “bus driver.” Not only is a Walking School Bus good for the environment, it’s a great way for children to enjoy fresh air and physical activity while walking and talking with their neighbors.
For a step-by-step guide to how you can start a Walking School Bus in your community, visit: http://www.srtsacademy.org/kits/walking-school-bus/establish.cfm
Celebration Ideas
- Decorate the routes to school with banners or signs. Get the students to make the signs, banner and flags.
- Greet children upon arrival at school with banners, balloons, flags, or even the school band, creating a festive occasion.
- Partner with local grocery stores to provide healthy treats and other refreshments for students who walk to school.
- Check with law enforcement agencies, city transportation departments, and health organizations to see if they have any give away materials/trinkets.
- Identify volunteers who will come into classes and conduct pedestrian safety lessons.
- Include the names of all the students who walked to (or at) school on a poster, website, newsletter, etc.
Activities
- Kick off a school mileage club. To learn more about mileage clubs see year long walk to (or at) school ideas.
- Hold a class-by-class competition - Reward the class that has the greatest percentage of students walking with a breakfast, an extra recess, or a pizza party.
- Hold a "Best Ways to Get Your Parents to Walk/Bike to School With You" contest-Have students come up with one-sentence ideas for getting parents to walk with kids. Publish a list of winners.
- Have students draw a memory map (cognitive map) of their walk to (or at) school. Invite them to write or draw what they saw, what was interesting what would make the walk safer, and what changes would make them more likely to walk again soon.
- Hold a treasure hunt by asking students to identify certain landmarks on their way to/or around school.
- Have students decorate an old pair of sneakers. Ask them to wear their decorated shoes to school during the walk.
- Have students and community volunteers complete a walkability assessment (TEXT LINK TO FAQ on Walkability Assessment) in the neighborhood around the school.
Lessons
- HealthComm Interactive, Inc. provides a Teacher's Resource Guide for our Bike Smart and Walk Smart CD-ROM programs for children in grades K-3. It contains a number of outdoor activities teachers can conduct with their students to enhance bicycle and pedestrian safety skills.
- Marin County, CA's Safe Routes to School page for lesson plans focused on safety, physical activity and the environment.
- Portland, OR's Office of Transportation offers K-8 curriculum focused on safety and transportation alternatives.
- The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration has safety lessons related to walking and biking.
For more planning ideas, visit http://www.walktoschool-usa.org/.
