Mantua – Each September, new kindergarten students at Crestwood Primary School spend a week of their brand new school year learning the best ways to stay safe in a variety of situations and circumstances. From how to safely board, ride on, and exit a school bus, to how to eat healthy, what to do to help reduce the risk of fires at home, and many more important safety-related topics; students learned from a multitude of local experts from their community.
Each day of the week brought another learning opportunity from another community resource. Mantua Police Office Justus and his K9 partner Vader came in to teach kids about the importance of wearing seatbelts while riding in motor vehicles. Students learned how to be safe while swimming from members from Hiram College’s swim team, and how to steer clear of poisons and harmful substance and the importance of hand washing to remove germs that cause illness.
And since most children loved dogs, representatives from the Geauga APL and Rescue Village showed kids the best way to approach a dog they don’t know. Student Resource Officer Kaitlin Osborn talked to students about stranger danger, and Juliana Myers, the Child Violence Prevention Specialist from Townhall II talked with kids about how to keep their bodies safe. Mrs. Wallbrown from Deerfield Farms shared information on how to stay safe on a farm.
Representatives from Heinen’s Grocery stores brought plenty of colorful, healthy food to show students how to successfully fuel their bodies, while Crestwood Food Service Director Jennifer Bujak-Hirsch shared info from myplate.gov, showing kids how to make healthy eating part of their lives. Students visited the playground wearing bike helmets in order to practice following signs and learning tips on how to stay safe while riding toys and bicycles. Later, they learned about gun safety with Officer Zwick and K9 Bryanfrom the Portage County Sheriff’s Office, boat safety from University Hospitals boat simulator, and eye safety from Real Eyes Eye Care.
At their closing event, Mantua Police Chief Joe Urso read, ‘Officer Buckle and Gloria,” a story about the helpful safety tips shared by Officer Buckle and his K9 partner Gloria. Officer Buckle tells kids to ‘always pull the toothpick out of your sandwich’ and ‘never lick a stop sign in the winter’, but really gains kids attention when his partner Gloria pantomimes some of the tips. She makes her fur stand on end to illustrate “Do not go swimming during electrical storms!’’ and jumps skyhigh to illustrate “Never leave a thumbtack where you might sit on it!’’ Together, Officer Buckle and Gloria learn it’s best to use the buddy system to stay clear of trouble. Afterwards, Chief Urso handed out Safety Town Certificates and cupcakes.
Every year, Crestwood’s Safety Town program is held at the beginning of each school year so that every kindergarten student may attend. This year, 135 students were educated on the best ways to stay safe in a variety of circumstances. Afterwards, Debbie Moore Wiandt shared, “As I parent, I am immensely grateful for Safety Town and the things my son learned this week. Thanks for providing it for our kids!”
The program is run by Kindergarten teacher Jolene Reese with CPS teachers and volunteers and provided at no cost to students’ families. Safety Town is made possible by generous support from the community. If you’d like to make a donation to this worthwhile effort, donations will be accepted at the Crestwood Primary School (11256 Bowen Road, Mantua, Ohio 44255), care of CPS/PTO. With your donation, please note that the funds are intended for the Safety Town program. All donations will be used to purchase supplies necessary for the program. For more information, contact Mrs. Reese at jreese@crestwoodschools.org.
