Injury Free Coalition for Kids® of Detroit and the Trauma Related Injury Prevention program educate children on the importance of pedestrian safety through teaching classes on crossing the street safely. The kids are taught “No toes in the road, no toes in the road” and “Look Right, Look Left, Look Right Again, and then WALK across the street.” They also have an opportunity to cross a small plastic street we bring into the classroom.
Along with education in the classroom, Injury Free Coalition for Kids of Detroit, Metro Detroit SAFE KIDS, and FedEx sponsor schools yearly for International Walk to School Day. Our program, Walk This Way, was conducted in three elementary schools in the Metro Detroit area. On the designated day, parents were asked to walk with their children to school and observe the route their children walk every day. The children and parents were then treated to a presentation from a local community representative on the importance of safe routes and pedestrian safety. They also received a brief educational session on crossing the street safely. The children were given pencils and reflectors provided by FedEx. The parents were then asked to stay and discuss some of the concerns the children presented. Some of the concerns the children presented regarding their route to school were: Prostitutes Homeless people begging Abandoned homes Burned out homes Packs of wild dogs Overgrown brush Drug dealers Traffic Trash Abandoned lots And much more…
