Students are headed back to the classroom and keeping them safe should be a top priority for everyone. Whether children walk, ride their bicycle, take the school bus, or ride in a car, it is important that they take proper safety precautions. When you talk to your children about everything that goes with their return to school, from teachers to friends to homework, please also talk to them about how to get there safely. This goes double for those of you with teenagers, since they are now the most at-risk youth for pedestrian injuries.

The National Safety Council (NCS) provides the following tips to make sure your child safely travels to school:

Walkers

Review your family’s walking safety rules and practice walking to school with your child.

• Walk on the sidewalk, if one is available; when on a street with no sidewalk, walk facing the traffic
• Before you cross the street, stop and look left, right and left again to see if cars are coming
• Make eye contact with drivers before crossing and always cross streets at crosswalks or intersections
• Stay alert and avoid distracted walking

Bike Riders

Teach your child the rules of the road and practice riding the bike route to school with your child.

• Ride on the right side of the road, with traffic, and in a single file
• Come to a complete stop before crossing the street; walk bikes across the street
• Stay alert and avoid distracted riding
• Make sure your child always wears a properly fitted helmet and bright clothing

Bus Riders

Teach your children school bus safety rules and practice with them.

• Go to the bus stop with your child to teach them the proper way to get on and off the bus
• Teach your children to stand 6 feet (or three giant steps) away from the curb
• If your child must cross the street in front of the bus, teach him or her to walk on the side of the road until they are 10 feet ahead of the bus; your child and the bus driver should always be able to see each other
• Get the facts on bus safety from Injury Facts

Driving Your Child to School

Stay alert and avoid distracted driving.

• Obey school zone speed limits and follow your school’s drop-off procedure
• Make eye contact with children who are crossing the street
• Never pass a bus loading or unloading children
• The area 10 feet around a school bus is the most dangerous for children; stop far enough back to allow them to safely enter and exit the bus

Teen Drivers

Car crashes are the No. 1 cause of death for teens. Fortunately, there is something we can do.

• Teens crash because they are inexperienced; practice with new drivers every week, before and after they get their license
• Set a good example; drive the way you want your teen to drive
• Sign the New Driver Deal, an agreement that helps define expectations for parents and teens

Download the NSC’s Back to School Checklist for more information.