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It’s a typical fall morning. Leaves cover the ground, there’s a crisp breeze, a little overnight condensation remains, and the school buses criss-cross the city streets.
In some neighborhoods, there are fewer buses. These are the places where walking to school is the norm, not the exception. I’m lucky to live and teach in neighborhoods like these. Walking to school brings people together; parents, children, friends, families. When I’m arriving at school in the morning, I see my former students shouldering their backpacks and climbing on their bikes or gathering together to walk to the nearby middle school. An hour later, I’ll see the sidewalks crowded again with groups of kids and adults headed to the elementary school where I teach.
Clorox Green Works is a sponsor of this month’s Walk to School Challenge. They have a Facebook group devoted to the cause, and they’re offering $5000 grants to schools with the highest participation in the Challenge. Walking to school helps connect people, build community, and fights sedentary lifestyles. Wow, all that with a short walk! Biking counts, too, as does riding a skateboard or scooter. Getting up and active energizes bodies and brains for a full day of learning.
I love looking out my classroom window just before the bell rings and seeing all the families gathering, saying good bye to their children for the day, and then walking on home again. I wish more schools could be as lucky as ours; situated in a neighborhood suitable for easy walking. If your school would like to participate in Clorox Green Works Walk to School Challenge, you can sign up and recruit others from your school to log miles – and win grant money in the process!
I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Clorox Green Works and received a thank-you gift certificate for my time.
>Alas, in our rural district, I have the ONLY children walking anywhere!