Walking to the Bus Stop

• Walk your young children to the bus stop and have older children walk in groups. There is safety in numbers - groups are easier for drivers to see.
• Practice good pedestrian behavior.
• Your children should walk on the sidewalk, if there is no sidewalk, they should stay out of the street. If they must walk in the street, they should walk single file, face traffic and stay as close to the edge of the road as they can.
• Tell your child to stop and look left, right, and then left again if they must cross the street. They should do the same thing at driveways and alleys. Exaggerate your head turns and narrate your actions so your child knows you are looking left, right, and left again.

Getting On & Off the Bus

• Warn children that if they drop something, they should never pick it up. Instead, they should tell the driver and follow the driver's instructions. If they bend over to pick up a dropped object, they might not be seen by the driver and could be hurt if the driver pulls away from the stop.
• Remind children to look to the right before they step off the bus. Drivers in a hurry sometimes try to sneak by buses on the right.
• Teach your children to secure loose drawstrings and other objects that may get caught in the handrail or door of the bus as they are exiting.
• Give your child a note or follow the school's procedures if you would like for the child to get off at a stop other than the one they are assigned. The driver isn't allowed to let a child off at another stop without written permission.
• If you meet your child at the bus stop after school, wait on the side where the child will be dropped off, not across the street. Children can be so excited at seeing you after school that they dash across the street and forget the safety rules.

Riding the Bus
Children should talk quietly, be courteous to the driver, and follow the driver's instructions. Children should stay seated during the entire bus ride and keep the aisles clear.