Skip to main content

Follow the Green Ribbon Road

Meagan Waite, Assistant Director - My Discovery Destination!

I used to work for a local school district. I had summers off, and they always flew by. I once had a boss tell me, “Once July 24 (which is a holiday in Utah) is here, summer is OVER!” She wasn’t wrong. 

Before long we will again be acutely aware of school zones, crossing guards, small human bicyclists, and that occasional elementary child that may dart out in the street. Back-to-school time can be a little scary as we all get used to the start-of-the-year school-yard melee.

My Discovery Destination! and the Discovery Family Coalition have “gamified” prevention in their quest to get every family talking about important issues like pedestrian safety, mental health, drug safety, online safety, bullying prevention and more.

Green Ribbon Week is an annual safety program held in conjunction with the beginning of school to educate families and communities about pedestrian and bike safety and to ensure every child knows how to get to school safely. The goal is to empower parents to teach their kids the importance of pedestrian and bike safety in a way that they can 'experience' these important lessons through interactive family Adventures. This is done through the Green Ribbon Week–Pedestrian & Bike Safety Prevention Week Hunt. 

Together students, their parents, and siblings can participate in activities that remind them to use the buddy system, help them recognize potential hazards en route to school, and even play pedestrian safety charades. 

Students and their families need all the protection they can get. Want to get involved? Sponsor Prevention Week Hunts in a school you know and care about. How do you get involved? Email Info@RibbonWeekFun.com

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Oh, The Places You'll Go...

  by Meagan Waite, Assistant Director - My Discovery Destination! Dr. Seuss, the beloved children’s author, wrote “Green Eggs and Ham” on a bet. The co-founder of Random House Publishing, Mr. Bennett Cerf, wagered that Seuss couldn’t write a book that had fewer than 50 unique words. Seuss won 50 bucks, and we have a piece of literary art with which one cannot help but rhyme along.  If you haven’t read it, you should. It can get you thinking about the relationship between what you believe and what you experience. It can encourage you to think outside the box (no would-nots, could-nots for you!) and try new things. It can give you courage to show resilience in the face of challenges, opposition, and adversity. Yes, reading can do that for you. March is National Reading Month. It has been designated as such in honor of Dr. Seuss’ birthday, March 2. My Discovery Destination! is celebrating. How? With a Discovery Hunt, of course! In fact, we bet YOU that you are going to love this ...

Love Is In the Air

by Meagan Waite, Assistant Director - My Discovery Destination! It’s almost Valentine’s Day, and the world is all-aflutter with overpriced red roses, paper hearts, and boxes of chocolate. I am also aware of the fact that some people refer to February 14 as Singles Awareness Day–I am in that demographic myself. Now I’m not down on romance just because I am currently footloose and fancy free. Just because this is the month of “amore” doesn’t mean that it is only referring to fairytale love. English is among the largest languages by word count. That being said, we native English speakers don’t have nearly enough for the word “love.” Now, the Greeks…they know about words of love.  Eros means passion. Philia is a deep friendship. Ludus is a playful love. Philautia is the love of self. But, it is agape, the love for everyone, and pragma, long standing love, that I wish to talk about. I believe that the love of a parent for their child falls into a combination of agape and pragma–an all e...

Back to School Priorities

by Meagan Waite, Assistant Director - My Discovery Destination! August can be a very exciting time of year. But before we delve into the reasons behind that, let’s look at the word “excited.”  “Excited” is synonymous with enthusiastic, animated and wildly happy. But, it also has a close meaning to these words: agitated, nervous, and emotional. Because of the very nature of the event, going back to school can cause all kinds of feelings. And, different children are going to have different reactions to the pending affair. What is a parent to do?  I think the key here might be one word: understanding. Remember what it was like when every fall you had to return to the grindstone with a new class, new teacher, and sometimes an entirely new school? While that might be long in your past, you can still empathize with what your child might be going through. Exercise patience, show a little mercy, and be compassionate with everyone involved, including yourself.  I was recently intr...