Guidelines from the National Safe Kids Campaign are a good place to start when talking with your child about school safety.
Walking to School
Pedestrian injuries are the second leading cause of unintentional injury-related deaths among children ages 5-14. To avoid an injury, parents should:
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Never let a child under age 10 cross the street alone.
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Choose the safest route between home and school and practice walking it with children until they can demonstrate traffic safety awareness.
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Make sure children use the same route everyday and teach them to avoid shortcuts.
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Teach children to recognize and obey traffic signals and pavement markings. A flashing "walk" signal at a cross walk does not mean it is safe to cross. Children should know they must still look both ways for traffic
before proceeding.
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Teach children to cross streets only in crosswalks and to walk -- not run -- across intersections.
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Emphasize to children that they should never enter streets from between parked cars or from behind shrubbery. Such darting between objects results in the majority of child pedestrian deaths.
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Remind children not to speak to strangers (someone they don't know). If a stranger approaches a student, they should tell their parents or a teacher.
Riding the Bus
More than 22,000 San Diego Unified students take the bus each day. Although bus travel is one of the safest ways to travel to and from school, injuries can still occur, and most of them take place when children are getting on or off the bus. Some safety tips for riding the bus are:
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Have children arrive at the bus stop at least five minutes before the scheduled arrival of the bus. Children should stay out of the street while waiting and not horseplay.
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Urge children to remain seated on the bus at all times and not shout or distract the driver. Children should know to keep their head and arms inside the bus at all times.
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Make sure children know to wait for the bus to come to a complete stop before getting on or off. Children should be made aware that the driver has a "blind spot" - the area from the front of the bus to about 10 feet in front of the bus - and they should not walk in this area after getting off.
Riding Bicycles
Bicycle riding is a favorite mode of transportation for children, but it can often be dangerous - bicycles are associated with more childhood injuries than any other consumer product except the car. To make sure children are safe when riding bicycles to school, parents should:
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Check with the school principal to make sure children are allowed to ride their bicycles to school, as some schools do not allow it.
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Make sure children wear their bicycle helmets at all times while on their bicycle. Head injury is the leading cause of death in bicycle accidents. Studies say helmets can reduce the risk of head injury by as much as 85 percent.
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Teach children to obey the rules of the road. They should know that the same rules that apply to other vehicles apply to them also. Bicycle riders should be on the right-hand side of the road, and should travel in the same direction as other traffic. They should also know and use appropriate hand signals.
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Choose the safest route between home and school and practice it with children until they can demonstrate traffic safety awareness.
Driving
Motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of unintentional injury-related deaths among children age 14 and under, according to the National Safe Kids Campaign. Some 75 percent of these accidents occur within 25 miles of home, and 60 percent take place on roads with posted speed limits of 40 mph or less. Important safety guidelines parents should follow are:
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Always use child safety seats and/or safety belts correctly when driving or riding in a car.
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Drop children off as close to school as possible so they do not have to cross streets. Make sure children enter and leave the car on its curb side.
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Use the school's designated student drop-off and pick-up zone.
It is important for parents to remember to always set a good example for children, whether walking, riding or driving.
San Diego Unified School District - School Safety
In Case of Emergency
All district schools have developed a comprehensive school safety plan that meets state requirements. The safety plan includes procedures that help us keep a safe and orderly environment for all students. Emergency procedures are discussed with students and teachers every year.
Memorial Preparatory regularly practices emergency drills in case of fire, natural disaster or other emergencies requiring a lockdown. Our goals in any emergency are:
- To keep students and staff in a safe environment
- Stay calm
- Facilitate an orderly evacuation to the back area of the school
- Account for every student and adult on campus
Fire - A continuous short bell will ring. All buildings are evacuated. Students walk with the teacher to the back area of the school.
Earthquake - A long bell of about 15 seconds will ring. A few minutes later, the fire bell will ring. If you are inside, move away from windows, drop to the floor and cover your head with your hands. If you are outside, move away from all buildings and overhead wires, drop to ground and cover your head with your hands. When the area has been determined safe, an all clear bell will sound, and students will be escorted to a safe area.
Lockdown - In the case of an intruder on our campus, a long continuous bell will ring. Students need to go into the closest open room. Teachers will lock the door, turn off the lights and shut the blinds. Students will be directed to go to the designated safe area for that room and/or lay on the ground. When the area is determined to be safe, police will evacuate the school; room by room.
Students and staff will reunify at the back area of the school. In the event of a real lockdown, police will assume authority for the situation, and we will follow their instructions.
Parent Action in Case of Emergency - Remain calm. In the specific cases of emergency, where students will be dismissed early, signs will be posted with instructions. We will have to follow school, district and police instructions to reunify parents with students. This may take some time, so please be patient.
Additional emergency tips for parents:
1. Students should memorize home, cell and work phone numbers for both parents.
2. Students should know the name and phone number for an adult to use as an alternate emergency number.
3. Have an alternate plan for rides, or plan to walk to or from school.
4. Post the "School Dates to Remember" flyer on the refrigerator so you know when holidays and minimum days are occurring.
5. Notify the school of any changes in home address and home or work phone numbers.
6. Be sure we have on file all numbers and names of adults who we can release your child to in the event of an emergency.
7. Notify the school of any restraining orders and any court or custody issues that may involve the school or your child.
8. Report any concerns or suspicions that you may have to a teacher, counselor or administrator. If you prefer to remain anonymous, please call the Campus Crime Stopper Hotline at 619-235-TIPS (619-235-8477).
Emergency Messages for Students
Emergency Messages for students will be given only in a life/death situation or when an unfortunate situation has risen. This policy was established to diminish interruptions to classroom instruction.
San Diego Unified School District - Keeping Our Schools Safe and Secure