PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION

Children that are old enough to go to school are often unaware of some basic safety precepts. The evidence seems to support this fact in that 1,150 children in Oregon were hospitalized due to preventable accidents in 1998. Issues related to the proper use of seat belts, school bus and pedestrian safety, fire and electrical use can all be overwhelming and a potential source of danger to children who find themselves unsupervised during periods throughout the day. The Union County Safe Communities, which is part of the Oregon SAFE KIDS organization, decided to present a strong safety message to these young children through a Safety Fun Fair.

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

The goal of this activity was to provide students with hands-on training and experience in safety issues that:

• Were memorable and fun activities; and

• Emphasized responsibility for personal safety.

STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITIES

In an effort to deliver on this hands-on approach to learning more about safety, organizers prepared several activity stations that focused on the following subject areas: fire safety, seat belt safety, school bus safety, bicycle helmet use and head protection, pedestrian safety, work zone safety, train safety, electrical safety and water safety. Students stayed at each station for five minutes. During that time, the children were shown specific actions they could take to ensure their safety.

The event was held at a local community center and featured safety mascots including McGruff the Crime Dog, Smokey the Bear, and Crash Test Dummies Vince and Larry. Chaperones were recruited for each safety station to assist the presenters.

RESULTS

The Union County Safe Communities set out to fulfill its vision of a unified public safety outreach activity for children four to eight years old within the county. Held over two days, more than 700 children were impacted by this activity. Families and friends of these children and the many volunteers were also affected by the effort. As a result, the injury prevention message continues to resonate in this county and beyond.

  SPRING 2002