Program Helps Kids Learn How to Stay Safe in All Kinds of Situations

During this summer’s , students didn’t just spend their days practicing in the mini town behind .

They also welcomed a variety of guests from the community, like firefighters, nurses, lifeguards and bus drivers, said Officer John Chrisopulos. 

After all, one of the most important lessons that Safety Town focuses on is introducing the students to their “friends in the community,” Chrisopulos said. 

On Thursday morning, Brecksville firefighter Mark Bender visited the classroom of preschool- and kindergarten-aged students dressed in a water rescue suit. By showing them the mask and the helmet and other gear, the students were able to get used to unfamiliar sights. Bender asked a lot of questions of the students, relating back to the video they had just watched. 

Most of the days during the two-week session are fairly similar, Chrisopulos said. The students meet a guest, watch a video or two and do a craft, all focused on a particular topic. And there is a small town set up behind the school, complete with little houses, painted roads and stop signs, for them to practice their safety skills in.

On Thursday, the topics of the day were water safety and pedestrian safety.  

After the visit from Bender, the students split into groups, which rotated through three tasks. The first group stayed inside and worked on books on pedestrian safety. A second group went outside and practiced crossing a real street with the help of the high school- and middle school-aged volunteers and an adult. A third group got to practice their skills on the Safety Town roads. 

The topics are all issues that parents might discuss at home, “but it makes a difference when someone else is telling them,” said Donna Rees, a dispatcher with the . Rees and Chrisopulos teach the program. 

Chrisopulos said he’s glad the mayor and the police chief let them take time away from their regular duties to teach the classes. He also said the Brecksville-Broadview Heights City School District and the Brecksville-Broadview Heights Preschool Mothers Club are big supporters of the program.

Brecksville's Safety Town has now ended for the summer, and Friday was the last day of the program.