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Neighbors | Abby Slanker.A member of the Canfield Police Department focused on teaching the children pedestrian and stranger safety at the PTA Kindergarten Safety Day on Aug. 17. The children were also able to check out the inside of a police cruiser.
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Neighbors | Abby Slanker.A Canfield Fire Department EMT showed incoming kindergartens the ins and outs of an ambulance during Canfield PTA's Kindergarten Safety Day on Aug. 17.
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Neighbors | Abby Slanker.During Canfield PTA’s Kindergarten Safety Day on Aug. 17, the Canfield Fire Department covered fire safety and described the firefighter’s gear and equipment they use during a fire and the students were also able to get an up close look at the fire truck.
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Neighbors | Abby Slanker.Selina Nepal, an incoming kindergartner at Hilltop Elementary School, prepared to visit her new school on her first bus ride during Canfield PTA's Kindergarten Safety Day.
BY ABBY SLANKER
A record number of 123 incoming Canfield Local Schools kindergarten students attended Kindergarten Safety Day 2019, sponsored by Canfield PTA, on Aug. 17. The soon-to-be kindergartners from Hilltop Elementary School and C.H. Campbell Elementary School participated a day of safety instruction at St. Michael’s Church.
Kindergarten Safety Day was designed to teach and inform the students about important safety guidelines and included presentations from the Canfield Police Department, Canfield Fire Department, Canfield library, Hilltop Elementary third-grade teacher Marie Rupert and Canfield Local Schools bus drivers. The children were scheduled to visit the four stations for 15 minutes each, rounding out the event with a bus ride to their respective elementary schools.
“We have 123 kindergartners here today. This is our largest Kindergarten Safety Day yet,” said Julie Miller, Canfield Local Schools PTA president.
The children were given name tags that were color coded and were instructed to follow the color coded corresponding schedule in the Safety Day informational handout they received at the registration table.
Hilltop Elementary School Principal Joe Maroni and C.H. Campbell Elementary School Principal Travis Lavery and Canfield Local Schools Superintendent Alex Geordan were on hand to meet the students and answer any questions.
A member of the Canfield Police Department focused on teaching the children pedestrian and stranger safety. The children were also able to check out the inside of a police cruiser.
The Canfield Fire Department covered fire safety and described the firefighter’s gear and equipment they use during a fire and gave the children tips on what to do if there is ever a fire at their home. The children were also given the opportunity to checked out the fire truck and were given plastic fire helmets and stickers.
Hilltop Elementary third-grade teacher Marie Rupert talked to the children about staying healthy in kindergarten and gave them a lesson on how to not spread germs. Canfield library Children’s Librarian Amanda Kollar read the children kindergarten-themed books.
Two Canfield Local School bus drivers, Eileen Schultz and Tony Ferraro, were in attendance to educate the children and their parents on school bus safety. The drivers focused on showing the students how to get safely on the bus, the rules that need to be followed while on the bus and how to safely get off the bus.
Once the students boarded the buses, they were taken to either Hilltop Elementary School or C.H. Campbell Elementary School, where they were shown how to exit the bus and enter the school. Maroni and Lavery accompanied the students on their bus ride to their respective schools and escorted the students to the kindergarten area so they could see where they will be attending class.
“Our principals ride with the children to the school and then walk them to the kindergarten classrooms so the children can actually see where they will be going on the first day. It’s a nice touch to have the principals walk them to their classrooms,” Miller said.
When the buses returned from students’ first bus ride, all attendees gathered back in the Family Life Center for the conclusion of the program, which included each soon-to-be kindergartner receiving a Safety Day gift bag and a personalized Safety Day certificate. Inside the goody bag was an activity donated by State Farm Insurance Agent Jason Reckard, crayons, a snack and the book “The Night Before Kindergarten” provided by the PTA.
PTO volunteers from both Hilltop Elementary School and C.H. Campbell Elementary School helped with the event. Colleen Rakers of C.H. Elementary School and Danielle Kapalko of Hilltop Elementary School served as co-chairs of Kindergarten Safety Day. Cassie Whitman serves as C.H Campbell Elementary School PTA Chair and Tiffany Smith serves as Hilltop Elementary School PTA Chair.
“Kindergarten Safety Day is a joint effort between Hilltop Elementary School and C.H. Campbell Elementary School. We would not be able to do this without all the volunteers from both schools,” said Miller.