|
Teacher stresses safety away from classroom
Sep 08, 2010 (The Arizona Daily Star - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) --
During the school day, Stephanie Hayes does her best to ensure that her students are not only learning, but that they are safe.
She knows what they're doing and who they're around. But once the school bell rings and they leave campus, she has no way of protecting them.
So the Holaway Elementary School teacher decided last year she would incorporate curriculum that promoted student safety for her third-graders.
"Many of the kids at my school have parents who work long hours or at night, so the kids spend time alone or in charge of younger siblings," Hayes said. "They need to know safety tips to prevent anything from happening to them."
She taught key safety rules, such as checking in with parents or guardians before going anywhere with anyone; utilizing the buddy system; not allowing others to violate their bodies; and the importance of telling a trusted adult if someone or something makes them scared, uncomfortable or confused.
Her efforts have paid off in two ways: Her students have learned how to keep themselves safe, and she received a classroom makeover valued at $10,000.
The makeover is sponsored by Honeywell International Inc., which teamed up with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to create the abduction prevention program Got 2B Safe.
Hayes is one of five grand prize winners across the country.
Her old midtown classroom was filled with mismatched furniture, blinds that could not be opened and chipped paint, Hayes said.
"It was functional but not much to look at," she said.
On Tuesday, she revealed a bright new classroom -- with a multicultural theme and fresh coats of paint -- to current and former students.
It's also stocked with technology: a laptop with video-making software, projector, document camera, an HD video camera and handheld flip cameras for students to utilize.
She hopes to have her students put together video newscasts on safety to be shown across the school.
"I wish I was in this class again," 10-year-old Pedro Montano said as he tested out a new handheld video camera.
Pedro was in Hayes' class two years ago.
"I like (the makeover)," he said. "It looks nice and new."
Hayes' decision to start the safety lessons last school year couldn't have been more timely. There was a rash of attempted abductions in the Tucson area.
"We really took a look at the safety rules," Hayes said of her lessons. "We brainstormed, we role-played and talked about what we would do in various situations."
The fact her students were English language learners and often came from other countries -- including Africa, Iraq, China and Mexico -- gave Hayes another important reason to incorporate safety into her lessons.
"I thought these skills could help students be successful inside and outside of the classroom," she said.
"At the same time, they were incorporating vocabulary and real-life skills."
Contact reporter Alexis Huicochea at ahuicochea@azstarnet.com or 573-4175.
To see more of The Arizona Daily Star, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to
http://www.azstarnet.com. Copyright (c) 2010, The Arizona Daily Star, Tucson
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For more information
about the content services offered by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services
(MCT), visit www.mctinfoservices.com, e-mail services@mctinfoservices.com, or
call 866-280-5210 (outside the United States, call +1 312-222-4544).
[ Back To iphone.tmcnet.com's Homepage ]
|