Resources and Education
There are many SRTS resources available to help students, caregivers, schools, and community stakeholders further their Safe Routes to School efforts. Feel free to use these resources to support your school’s SR2S efforts. KDOT's SRTS program will be developing more Kansas-specific materials in the coming years, so stay tuned and sign up for the e-newsletter to be notified when new resources are released!
Getting Started with Safe Routes to School
KDOT’s SRTS Informational Flyer – This flyer, created by KDOT’s SRTS Program, gives a quick introduction to the program, discusses SRTS benefits, and provides information about how to get involved.
Walk, Bike and Roll to School – This document, prepared by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, offers advice about how to start a program and address some common challenges.
Pedestrian Safety
Parents’ Role in Keeping Children Safe – This tip sheet is aimed at parents to teach them how to walk and drive safely with their child or near other children.
Wheeled Safety
Cycles of Change partners with BORP (http://www.borp.org/) to bring adaptive bikes onto campus for students with disabilities. BORP’s a great resource for folks interested in getting an adaptive bike, as well as other adaptive recreational opportunities!
Safe Kids Worldwide Bike Safety Tips – (English | Spanish)
Safe Kids Worldwide Rules of the Ride (English)
Helmet Safety
Safe Kids Worldwide Helmet Fit Test – (English | Spanish)
Safe Kids Kansas: Keeping Kids Safe – This organization provides important information regarding bike and wheeled safety, helmet fit, and pedestrian safety. They also offer up to 50 free bike helmets. Free helmets are available year-round, as funding permits. Please contact Ashlee.Barkley@ks.gov, KDHE Outreach Coordinator, for more information.
School Bus Safety
Safe Kids Worldwide School Bus Safety Tips (English)
Crossing Guard Guidelines
Adult School Crossing Guard Guidelines - These guidelines were developed by the National Center for Safe Routes to School and the Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center to help communities understand crossing guard placement, training, and strategies.
SRTS for Students with Disabilities
Involving Students with Disabilities in SRTS - This document, prepared by the Prepared by the National Center for Safe Routes to School, outlines strategies for making a SRTS program inclusive for children with disabilities.
Education Resources
Many cities and states have classroom lesson plans and resources for teaching students about bicycle and pedestrian safety. A few of our favorites are listed below:
BikeWalkKC serves dozens of schools and thousands of kids every year in the Kansas City area and can provide bicycle education classes to your communities. The organization is currently working on creating a pedestrian safety offering!
Let’s Go NC! (North Carolina): A pedestrian and bicycle safety skills program for elementary schools, including lesson plans and videos.
California Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Curriculum for Grades 4 and 5: A program aligned with California education standards specifically for upper elementary school students.
Roll Bicycle Education Into Your Physical Education Program: This fact sheet explains the why and the how of integrating bicycle education into physical education programs.
Active Transportation Alliance Teacher Resources: A resource kit that includes quick 10-minute lessons for use in PE classes, other sample lessons, and additional resources for elementary, middle, and high school teachers.
Bicycle and Pedestrian Curricula Guide: A guide to bicycle and pedestrian education for students.
Safe Routes to School and Student Leaders: Facilitator's Guide to Engaging Middle School Youth: Education guide specifically aimed at middle schoolers.
A bicycle skills clinic, also called a bike rodeo, offers a chance for elementary school students and their families to learn and practice bike handling skills in a fun, safe, and encouraging atmosphere.
Cycle Quest (Elk Grove, California): An activity book and resource library to help students and their care givers learn how to bike safety throughout their community.
Bikeology: A ready-to-use bicycle-safety curriculum developed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and SHAPE America for physical education teachers and recreation specialists working with students in grades 6-12.
Encouragement Resources
Walking School Buses are groups of children walking to school with one or more adults. It can be as informal as two families taking turns or as structured as a planned route with trained volunteers.
Bike Trains are groups of students and parents or volunteers who ride to school together, kind of like a carpool, but for people on bikes.
Bicycle Rodeos are events which provide an opportunity for bicycle riders to practice and develop skills to help them to become better bicyclists.
Traffic Gardens have small-sized streets with scaled-down traffic features where children and new learners practice and learn biking skills, road safety, and how traffic works in a place free from motor vehicles.
