Safe Travels

Marianne Nordahl
 
School bus evacuation drills are an important a part of the school program. Just like fire drills are used to practice evacuating a school building, students must be aware of procedures in a bus emergency. There is a growing need, due to the increased number of students being transported as well as an ever-increasing number of accidents on the highways, to acquaint students with their roles and responsibilities. Our Lower School classes take several field trips each month transported by our buses. Therefore, teachers and students must know how to properly vacate a school bus in case of an emergency. At some point during the school year, every student will be on board a school bus for an event, so we want them to be prepared.

We have a few people on our campus that regularly drive the bus for us in Lower School. They are familiar with our students, and we are comfortable with them. Everyone relies on them to get groups to their destination safely and on time. There is an incredible responsibility put upon these drivers. This training/drill educated all Pre-K through 5th grade students and teachers, and it gave us some insight from the driver’s perspective.  

Mrs. April Welcome, our full-time driver, led the training, showing students and teachers how to use all of the exits on the bus. This included identifying the emergency exits, how to use the window exits, sitting and “scooting” out the rear emergency exit door, and how to pop open the roof hatches. She also reiterated some rules. The need to talk quietly on the bus, no food or drinks, and no littering were mentioned. One of the main rules for when the bus is moving is: back to the seat back and bottom to the seat bottom. Sit down and stay seated facing forward, out of the aisles because if the bus driver was forced to put on the brakes quickly, the passengers could get hurt. Teachers and students were also made aware of essential hand signals from the driver indicating noise level or trouble.

Every student and teacher went through this training last week. Some grade groups had a few questions; there was a lot of chatter about what they had learned. This drill made us more aware of the whole bus experience and how we all play a vital role in bus safety.
Talk to your child about participating in this event. Review some of the key points:
  • Use quiet voices at all times.
  • Exit seat by seat.
  • Leave the bus quickly and quietly without pushing or shouting.
  • Sit and scoot out the back exit.
  • Walk to a safe place, and always stay together if possible.

Marianne Nordahl is the Lower School Principal at Calvary Day School. She enjoys connecting with Calvary families and sharing her love of learning with the staff. She is amazed to see God working in the children's lives each and every day. Mrs. Nordahl lives by Joshua 1:9: “Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
 
Back