Spotlight: How to Make Every Day Bike to School Day

[facebook][retweet]Today is National Bike to School Day, and families throughout Santa Clara and San Mateo County participated, with a few taking advantage of the "May the Fourth" coinciding date.Of course, Bike to School Day is only one of the numerous activities taking place throughout the year to encourage more children to walk and bike to school, with our Safe Routes to Schools Program engaging youth from Gilroy to San Jose and Redwood City.A partner of ours is the Safe Routes to School Program in Los Gatos, coordinated by Karen Briones. Since October 2015, she has been active in engaging students and families from Los Gatos elementary schools to walk, bike, skateboard, or scooter to classes through a variety of programs.We're happy to spotlight the work that Karen is doing in Los Gatos, and to recognize all the parents and family members who have their youth bicycling to school. Thank you for engaging the next generation of bicyclists!Share with us some of the activities that you have been coordinating at schools with the Safe Routes to School Coalition. Any success stories?The school sites have been very busy in Los Gatos. We are wrapping up our “Take It To The Streets” events. Take It To The Streets' focus is to encourage families to seek out active transportation to build healthy habits and reduce traffic around schools. The ultimate goal is to have no cars to and from school on those days. This year, schools decorated sidewalks with chalk reminding everyone to walk and bike, organized walking/cycling school busses, mapped out routes and raffled off some exciting prizes. In addition, the RJ Fisher Helmet Educators will wrap up the school year with their final presentation to 4th graders at Van Meter Elementary School. This dedicated group of 7th graders has taught over 300 4th graders the importance of wearing a helmet and how to properly fit the helmet. We are currently looking at developing a curriculum that would touch every grade level to begin to build skills and confidence early.What are other benefits to walking/biking to school for kids and families, other than for health reasons? There are the obvious health benefits of increased physical activity, better focus in school and building long-term healthy habits. However, I see a few other important benefits from active transportation to and from school. It allows for more in depth, less distracted conversation allowing for the development of stronger friendships. They have uninterrupted time to talk. This social time is so important as children get older. My children saw this as their time to “hang out” with friends both before and after school. On the days they rode or walked they came home ready for the next activity having had time to process the school day. Most of us learn our way around our cities when we are forced to navigate our way to a new location. Biking and walking to school helps kids to develop a sense of direction around their community. Kids are forced to seek out their route to and from school. They become familiar with landmarks and navigate new areas with greater ease and independence. When they become drivers they are more aware of pedestrians and bicyclists. It is a win for everyone.What are common barriers preventing kids to walk or bike to school, and what are you doing to overcome them? One of the biggest obstacles to walking and biking to schools is adults. It is often difficult to let go. As a parent I still worry about my own children when they are out and about without me, but knowing that I have taught the skills and modeled the behavior helps. We spend time developing healthy and safe biking, walking and skateboarding skills in kids in the classroom and during bike rodeos. With the right tools, kids make good choices. SR2S works on getting parents involved in process early. We encourage parents to walk and ride with younger children so they can model appropriate behaviors and establish safe routes from home to school. As kids get older, parents are encouraged to let go but to stay involved. Establish the route they want their child to take to school, ride or walk with them a few times and then trust that they have set their child up for success. Walking and riding with a buddy is important. This gives the kids an extra hand with help is needed.What do you think needs to be done to encourage more people to get on a bicycle as a regular means of transportation?Building habits early can lead to life long biking, walking and riding. Providing support for students helps to encourage bike riding to school. Our school sites work to provide adequate bike storage and places to store sports equipment and helmets. At RJ Fisher Middle School, students store skateboards and scooters in the “Board Room.” All of these measures frees up worries for kids and parents.How did you first get involved with Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition? I have been involved in Safe Routes to School for many years and had heard of the Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition. As the SR2S Coordinator for the LGUSD I began to follow the SVBC because it supports efforts to get kids involved in active transportation. We teamed up together last January to offer a community education event on Vision Zero.Share with us what a dream day on your bike looks like. I recently spent a dream day on my bike. Time spent with our teenage daughters is most valuable for my husband and me. While we were on vacation in southern California we took a bike ride along the beach. We rode along the sand checking out the surfers, spotting dolphins swimming and enjoying the sunny weather. This resulted in lots of lively conversation.Here are some great tips on helping your child be a safe bicyclists (y tambien en español). Are you interested in getting a Safe Routes to School program started in your school? Check out this handy resource toolkit from the National Center for Safe Routes to Schools. You can also reach out to our Education Programs Manager Ernesto Lizaola.