BEND, OR — The first day of school can be nerve racking for young children. Add on top of that a first ever trip on the giant school bus, and many kindergarteners can go from excited to scared in a heart beat. To help calm nerves of both students and parents, the Bend-La Pine School District will hold its annual Winnie the Pooh School Bus Safety Program.
“It gives them a chance to learn some of the bus rules and to get on a bus,” said Director of Transportation Denise Blake. “They go for a little ride around our parking lot so they can see what a bus looks like in a very safe environment, and they get to learn how to cross the street and watch the bus driver to wait to see when it’s safe to cross. And it’s just a really good opportunity for little guys to find out how fun it’s going to be to ride the bus.”
Blake told KBNW News the effort is successful.
“The little guys who have gone to this program are pretty confident, pretty aware of what they need to do, and the one that don’t get the opportunity to do that at first are a little more hesitant about crawling in that big, yellow bus. Even though they’re excited about it, it can be a little bit scary for them.”
The event takes place Thursday at 1 p.m. and 6 p.m., Friday at 1 p.m. and 6 p.m., and on Saturday at 11 a.m., 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. at the District’s Transportation headquarters on SE 2nd St. To learn more, call (541) 355-5700.
Blake added the Winnie the Pooh School Bus Safety Program is free and registration is not required.
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