[heading]Road Safety Week[/heading]
Dear Parents,
Next week is Road Safety Week. The aim of the week is for the children to have a better understanding of their own road safety as a pedestrian, and ways that they can keep safe.
Your child’s best road safety teacher is you. This is because basic road safety can only be taught in the street. Your child is out and about with you and it’s your example they will follow.
Please find outlined below some tips to help you ensure your child remains safe and develops good road sense and traffic awareness skills. These tips are part of The THINK! Campaign, run by the Department for Transport.
For children under 5 years of age
Research shows that young children can’t judge how fast vehicles are going or how far away they are.
Children aged 3 to 5 need to learn what traffic is and understand that it can be dangerous. They also need to know about the different types of traffic found on roads.
Talking about traffic with your child when you’re out and about is one of the best ways for him or her to learn:
- Play ‘spotting’ games: Where’s a lorry? Can you find a bus? Let’s see who can spot a taxi first.
- Ask your child to tell you about the vehicles waiting at the traffic lights or passing you in the car.
- Talk about vehicles you see: which is biggest or fastest? What colours are they? Which one carries the most people? Which way is it going? Do some counting.
- Building up your child’s language will help them to understand traffic: use words to describe speed, size, shape, directions or talk about signs, lights, signals and road markings.
- Talk about how we can tell when traffic is near or when it is coming towards us, asking your child when cars are safe and when they can be dangerous
For children aged 5-7
Explain to your child why they need to stop, look and listen when crossing the road.
Talk about safer places to cross and how it’s harder to see when there are parked cars, junctions, bends or the brow of a hill.
Help your child to learn the names of the different crossings, such as zebras, puffins, pelicans and footbridges.
You could hold hands with your child and show them how to stop on the kerb, look all around and listen for traffic before they cross. First explain that they must stop at the kerb and not step into the road as traffic might be coming very fast. Then they must look all around because traffic could come from any direction and they should listen because sometimes you can hear traffic before you see it.
When it is safe, walk straight across (not diagonally) and keep looking and listening. Tell your child they must do this in case there is any traffic they did not see, or in case traffic appears suddenly.
For children aged 7-11
Making independent journeys
Eleven year olds will be heading to secondary school and may face a longer walk or bike ride, using different roads. As a parent it is important for you to help your child plan for this important step by showing them how to stay safe.
What do children need to know?
- The Green Cross Code is a good start: armed with this, children will feel more confident about crossing roads, including unfamiliar ones
- Where there are dangers or hazards in the locality, such as particularly busy stretches of road, complicated junctions or dangerous bends and hills
- They need to know the safest route to where they are going: this may not always be the quickest
- Children need to understand that using their eyes and ears all the time is essential to being safe near traffic: they should avoid distractions such as chatting to friends, using mobiles or listening to MP3s when crossing roads. The more easily they can be seen by traffic, the more likely they are to avoid collisions.
Road Safety books
As part of the Road Safety Week every child will be receiving a road safety book next week. The books are very helpful and will help develop your child’s understanding and awareness.
Homework (Key Stage 1 and 2)
Your child will be bringing home a road safety homework sheet to complete with an adult next week. Please take some time to read through and complete the homework together. The road safety book that your child will be receiving will be helpful in doing this.
Useful Websites
There are also some very useful and informative websites which include interactive games and children’s sections:
http://think.direct.gov.uk/education/early-years-and-primary
http://www.familylearning.org.uk/road_safety_games.html
http://www.roadwise.co.uk/
Best wishes,
Miss Bailey
PSHE Leader
[box title="Parental Feedback" color="#0D83DD"]
"Words are difficult to come by with which can describe our appreciation as a family for the great contribution of Cathedral School to our child’s formative years. The school has not only developed accademically but also built her into a confident learner. Thanks to all of the staff. Thank you very much."
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[box title="The Book People - £5 off when you spend £20" color="#0D83DD"]
If you are thinking of buying books a Christmas presents please consider using The Book People website which offer discounted prices on all genres including children's fiction.
The Book People’s School Fundraising Scheme offers benefits parents and school:
- Cathedral School receives 10% of the value of every order placed to spend on books.
- Parents are rewarded with exclusive Book People offers including £5 off when you spend £20
www.thebookpeople.co.uk/school-fundraising
Cathedral School Fundraising Code:
xHv4HuF
Please see attached information sheet for more details.
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[box title="Homework Club at Southwark Libraries" color="#0D83DD"]
Southwark Libraries Homework Help is a free study support services available to all primary and secondary students in Southwark. The Homework Help sessions are held term- time on a drop in basis between 4 - 6 pm on weekdays.
Students attending our Homework Help session will receive:
- Free Homework Help
- A calm place to study and work
- Free printing and photocopying
- Free internet access
- Work with knowledgeable volunteers
- Access to a wide range of educational resources
- Meet new friends
- Opportunities to learn new study skills
- Convenient opening times
- Family learning opportunities
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[box title="Firefighter Visit" color="#0D83DD"]
In Early Years this half term, both Nursery and Reception have been learning about the people in our community who help us, as well as how to keep safe. Fire safety and the job that firefighters do has been one of the main focuses of lessons.
On Wednesday Nursery and Reception were lucky enough to have 5 firefighters and their fire engine visit from the Dowgate Fire Station. The children learnt all about what the firefighters wear to keep safe and even had a chance to try on a real firefighter’s helmet! The firefighters told us about the different jobs that they have to do, not just to put out fires. They also spoke about fire safety at home and what to do if there was a fire.
The children had a chance to look around the fire engine, hearing how loud the siren is and talking about all the different parts such as the ladder and the special register for the firefighters in the back seat. The children saw all of the special equipment such as the camera that the firefighters use to find people when it is smoky. All of the children also had a chance to spray the hose, seeing what it’s like to be a firefighter!
Nursery and Reception all enjoyed the visit from the firefighters and received a special fire safety book to look at and colour in at home with their grown-ups. If you’d like to see more pictures, there will be some posted on Nursery and Reception’s Blogs.
The visit is a timely reminder for us all to check fire alarms at home.
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