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Schools stepping up for active travel with Feet First
The Feet First 2009 action project is encouraging primary school students to walk to school with a caregiver, friend or organised walking group at least once a week, every week during term time.
The New Zealand Transport Agency wants to increase the number of children walking to school at least once a week, every week, during term time.
This year Feet First will also provide curriculum content for teachers to talk about walking in relation to safety, exploring, creativity and saving the planet. Teachers will be able to draw from a range of curriculum resources that link to the environmental, social, economic and health benefits of going on foot. The whole approach is around encouraging learning opportunities and supporting safe walking.
Students and teachers will have the opportunity to consider the wider issues related to walking such as urban design, community development or the environment. They could study family history looking at ‘how we used to walk to school’ or look at the health benefits of active travel.
New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) education manager Jennie Gianotti says the benefits of children getting to school using active transport are significant.
“More children walking to school means better levels of fitness and health, less money spent on petrol, reduced energy use and fewer vehicle emissions, less congestion at the school gate and more social interaction for children, their families and whānau. While walking they’re also learning sustainable transport habits for the future.”
The Feet First 2009 project works alongside other projects including those already established in environmental issues, health and physical well-being.
During the year all schools will have access to the Feet First website, as well as curriculum materials. Those who are registered to take part will receive other printed materials and can submit walking blogs, stories and case studies.
Greater Wellington’s School Travel Plan Coordinator, Rebecca Jamieson, is running a short story competition to encourage schools to sign up to Feet First and get walking.
“It was much more common for our parents and grandparents to walk to school but now more than 50 per cent of New Zealand primary kids are driven to and from school. That’s double the number from only two decades ago,” Jamieson says.
Some schools may also choose to develop some of these walking stories and submit them to the NZTA Picture Book Challenge. In Term 4 the winning school will get the chance to publish their own picture book on active travel while working alongside a professional author, illustrator and editor. The winning school’s book will have a professional launch and be distributed to every school library in New Zealand.
Online registrations are now open at the interactive Feet First website www.feetfirst.govt.nz or you can email feetfirst@nzta.govt.nz. The site hosts the curriculum resources and will showcase articles, case studies and links to class blog sites so participating schools can compare and share information.
