Starting road safety

We live in a very small village in a rural location, with a small country road and mostly no pavement.  Some days it is very quiet and looks like this

On other days it is busy with log lorries, caravans, foreign holiday makers (usually having turned the wrong way off the ferry), motorbikes, cyclists, sheep…….

We walk along this road everyday, most of the time Luath is on my back, but some evenings she walks (the traffic is usually very quiet then). Obviously I can’t always carry her until she is 8 (before that age it is deemed a child can’t be fully road safe) and I can’t always be with her, so we have started to work on road safety.

Books

Tufty has had a makeover since I was a child but these books are still fun to read with Luath.

Road safety Scotland produced a buggy book called “out and about”, which they aim to issue to all Scottish babies via the bookbug pack. Luath loves the book and it has helped her learn different vehicles and the sounds they make.

We have a few other books featuring different vehicles.

Our simple start

What we have started working with Luath this week is that when we hear or see a vehicle coming, then we go as far into the verge as safely possible, all stand together, stand still, once the vehicle has passed we check to see no more vehicles are coming and if not we can return to the road.  Luath has been learning by observing this behaviour by us since she was born so she is already familiar with the routine.

She has grasped this very quickly and actually loves shouting “car coming” and heading to the verge and saying “stand still”, even when there is no vehicle in sight.  I still stand right next to her and either hold onto her  or hover my hands very close. but she hasn’t moved once.  We are working on holding hands, but are not pushing this as she has only in the last two months become comfortable with and initiating holding hands.
We have also been playing this as an indoor game.

Road Safety Week

This year’s road safety week is 19-25 November 2012 , the campaign this year is slower speeds=happy people, more info here.  I have signed up for an e-action pack as we do have people that speed through our village at well above the 30mph (although the max limit should be 20mph).  On the road we walk along they legally can drive at 60mph, which is crazy!

Resources
Road Safety Scotland  has some more ideas.
he department for transport has some resources and lesson ideas for teaching road safety for various ages, including under 5s.

Linked with Tuesday tots via Rainy Day mum, see what else is happening

(Luath is 19months)