Parent Teacher Magazine Union County Public Schools May/June 2016 | Page 20

Buster the Bus makes school bus safety lessons fun
Teaching school bus safety isn’t
a new concept in public school
education, but when a talking mini
school bus named Buster rolled into
the media center at Indian Trail
Elementary School, students sat up
and took notice.
“I learned that the back of the
bus is a danger zone and if you
drop your paper, you have to tell
your bus driver,” said third grader
Jordan Vaughn. “You can’t go back
and pick it up.”
Director of Transportation
Richard Kingsberry said Buster’s
role is to remind students about
school bus safety in order to avoid
injuries that relate to school buses.
“I think the students were
pretty amazed at Buster’s ability
to interact with them, particularly
when he called their names,”
Kingsberry said.
“I thought it was pretty cool,”
said third grader Vincent Moye.
“You just don’t see a mini talking
school bus every day. Everything
Faye Crowder-Phillips, a UCPS transportation
safety and training manager, helps Buster
about him is cool.”
demonstrate bus safety measures to students at
Buster is the product of a grant
Indian Trail Elementary School.
that the UCPS Transportation
Department applied for last year.
“We were fortunate enough to get that grant,” Kingsberry said. “Now we have the
opportunity to use Buster as a teaching tool at all of our elementary schools.”
Indian Trail Elementary School was chosen to launch the school system’s new safety
ambassador. Buster began visiting all UCPS elementary schools in March.
Faye Crowder-Phillips, a UCPS transportation safety and training manager, helped
Buster communicate with students during the demonstration.
Students squealed enthusiastically when Buster rolled into the
room, blinking his big eyes, flashing his warning lights and
greeting students with his kid-friendly high-pitched voice.
“The students got excited because they didn’t know what to
expect,” Kingsberry said. “They got to hear the same message
that we’ve been saying about bus safety, but it was delivered in a
different format.”
“Walk up the stairs carefully, one at a time. Always use the
handrail. If you drop something, tell the driver to get it. Don’t go
after it yourself,” Buster told students. “When getting off the bus,
don’t push or shove getting out of your seat. If you have to cross
the street, look at your bus driver. He or she can see when it’s safe
to cross the street. Then look both ways when you cross the road.”
These were some of the safety rules Buster discussed with
students. “This gives students a visual,” Kingsberry said. “When
they can actually see and have an interaction with Buster, I think
it has a more lasting effect. They hear these safety rules at school,
but when they see it, they connect it. We’re teaching them both
ways. That’s a real big plus for retaining that knowledge.”
Indian Trail Elementary