Walktober Walk-to-School
Congratulations to the 372 primary schools across Victoria that participated in Walktober Walk-to-School 2009
We have seen:
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50 more schools take part in the day than 2008; and
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71,678 children walk to school on the day of Walktober Walk-to-School (60% of the school's population!)
Schools will recieve enough stickers for every student in the school and a certificate in the post shortly. You can also download individual student certificates.
Student certificate
The follwing schools have won a prize
Vouchers will be posted to your school shortly.
Schools that have won a Tabloid Sports Carnival
St Aloysius Primary School, Caulfield
Tootgarook Primary School, Tootgarook
Schools that have won a Golden Shoe Award
Penbank Primary School, Moorooduc
Whitfield District Primary School, Whitfield
Schools that have won a $300 HART Sport Equipment Voucher
0-199 student enrolment
Edenhope College, Edenhope
Great Western Primary School, Great Western
Harrietville Primary, Harrietville
Jamieson Primary School, Jamieson
Jeparit Primary School, Jeparit
Piangil Primary School, Piangil
Rawson Primary School, Rawson
Sacred Heart School, Casterton
St Mary's Primary School, Hastings
Tobruk Street Primary School, Morwell
200-349 student enrolment
All Saints Parish Primary School, Portland South
Ararat West Primary School, Ararat
Christ Our Holy Redeemer, East Oakleigh
Highvale Primary School, Glen Waverley
Manchester Primary School, Mooroolbark
Merrivale Priamary School, Warrnambool
St Arnaud Primary School, St Arnaud
St James Primary School, Vermont
St. Joan Of Arc, Brighton
Surfside Primary School, Ocean Grove
350 and above student enrollment
Bayswater North primary School, Bayswater
Blessed Mary MacKillop Primary School, Keilor Downs
Brighton Beach Primary School, Brighton
Courtenay Gardens Primary School, Cranbourne
Mountain Gate Primary School, Ferntree Gully
Saint Monica's Primary School, Moonee Ponds
St Therese's School, Essendon
Thomastown West Primary School, Thomastown
Tinternvale Primary School, Ringwood East
Watsonia North Primary School, Watsonia
Prizes
Prizes will be awarded based on the number of students who walk to school on the day, as a percentage of the total number of students enrolled.
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All schools that participate in Walktober Walk-to-School 2009 will go in a draw for the chance to win one of two Tabloid Sports Carnivals.
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The two schools that demonstrate the greatest increase in the proportion of the student population walking to school on Walktober Walk-to-School Day compared with the day prior will win the Golden Shoe Award for one year.
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The top 10 schools from each category to achieve the greatest proportion of the student population walking to school on Walktober Walk-to-School Day will win a $300 HART Sport equipment voucher.
The school’s enrolment figure will determine which one of the prize categories is relevant.
Prize category 1 - School enrolment = 1 to 199 students.
Prize category 2 - School enrolment = 200 to 349 students.
Prize category 3 - School enrolment = 350 students and above.
Information pack and resources
Please note that every Victorian Primary School and Council/Shire have been sent an Information Pack in mid August 2009.
If you would like an Information Pack posted to you, please go to the subscriptions page and register. If you are an existing user login and amend your subscription to include Walk to School Information Pack
You can also download Information Pack contents below.
Student certificate
Instruction sheet 09
Classroom participation sheet 09
Walk-to-School A4 poster
Walk-to-School A3 poster
Walk-to-School A4 colour-In
Walk-to-School A3 information poster
School newsletter template
Some suggestions for common barriers to participation
Are teachers too busy to organise and prepare for Walk-to-School?
Walktober Walk-to-School is very simple to run. Why not give the responsibility to a group of senior students such as the Student Representative Council to organise the event or perhaps a parent would like to get involved?
Do many of your students live too far away to walk to school?
Many students, particularly in some outer suburban and regional areas, live some distance from school.
‘Part way is OK' is a means to ensure that these students can still have the opportunity to enjoy walking and riding to school.
The concept of ‘Part Way is OK’ aims to improve the level of student participation from nothing to something.
“Since we took part in WWTS our school has run Walking Wednesdays every week. Parents drop their children at Safeway’s car park and we walk together, me and another staff member”
– a Monbulk school |
The goal of the 'Part Way is OK' is to use concept that encourages more school students to walk or cycle to school by overcoming the following barriers:
- The perception that the distance between home and school is too far to ride or walk; and
- The perception that the journey between home and school is unsafe.
What to do:
- Provide supervised meeting points within walking and riding distance to and from the school;
- Parents/ guardians are encouraged to take students to these designated meeting points;
- Students, teachers and parents may then all walk to school together!
In the lead up to Walktober Walk-to-School
VicHealth would like to ensure that all students across Victoria are well informed about road safety issues in the lead up to Walktober Walk-to-School. Below are some simple and practical ways to ensure that children are capable of walking to school.
A recommendation to schools
It is recommended that your school works with Kids on the Move, Victoria’s key traffic safety education resource for primary schools. This resource is designed to help children learn to travel safely. Please visit http://www.education.vic.gov.au/studentlearning/programs/traffic/resources.htm for your free copy.
A recommendation to parents
In primary school children become more independent in their travel – as pedestrians and cyclists. Parents/carers can help them prepare for increased independence by providing plenty of practical supervised experience in using the road safely and by modelling safe road use. Your children learn by watching what you do!
Crossing the road safely - Stop, Look, Listen and Think
Help your children understand the correct road crossing procedure – STOP, LOOK, LISTEN and THINK.
- Hold an adult’s hand (for younger children)
- Choose a safe place to cross – where you have a good clear view of traffic in all directions and where drivers can see you
- STOP one step back from the kerb or shoulder of the road is there is no footpath
- LOOK in all directions for approaching traffic
- LISTEN in all directions for approaching traffic
- THINK about when it is safe to cross the road – when the road is clear or all traffic has stopped
- When crossing, walk straight across the road. Keep LOOKING and LISTENING for traffic while crossing.
Walk-to-School Day preparation
Here are some tips to help prepare your children for Walk to School Day. Remember that younger children need to be supervised on or near roads by an adult parent or carer.
- Together with your child, plan a safe route to walk to school. If possible plan a route that makes best use of paths and roads that are away from busy traffic conditions.
- Practise walking the route with your child, observing any potential traffic hazards.
- Remind your children to STOP, LOOK, LISTEN and THINK when crossing a road.
How local councils/shires can get involved in Walktober Walk-to-School
A case study from 2008
Brimbank City Council encouraged all our primary schools to get involved in Walktober Walk-to-School in 2008. To encourage school participation, a competition was organised and a letter was sent from Council to each of the primary schools explaining how they could enter the local competition.
In partnership with Rebel Sport, Brimbank Council offered schools the chance to win one of three prizes:
- $600 Rebel Sport voucher (1st prize)
- $400 Rebel Sport voucher (2nd prize)
- $200 Rebel Sport voucher (3rd prize)
Prizes were allocated to the 3 primary schools in Brimbank with the most walkers (as a % of their school) on Walktober Walk-to-School Day.To keep this simple, Council asked schools to fax a copy of their results to VicHealth as well as Council to be eligible for both the state-wide and local prizes. In the end 9 Brimbank primary schools participated in the event. The 3 prize winners were awarded their Rebel Sport vouchers at their school assembly. Council additionally prepared a media release after Walktober to promote the great work by all the schools who participated.
Other programs that promote walk-to-school activities
Go for your life’ Did you know that by participating in Walktober Walk-to-School, you are on your way to qualifying for a Kids - 'Go for your life’ Award?
TravelSmart Works with schools to encourage students and their families to choose healthy and environmentally friendly ways of travelling through travel planning.
Ride2School Encourages healthy lifestyles by increasing students' physical activity levels through a variety of different activities.
Kids on the Move Victoria's key safety education resource for primary schools.
International Walk to School Month Gives children, parents, school teachers and community leaders an opportunity to be part of a global event as they celebrate the many benefits of walking
Safety House Victoria Safety houses areidentified by their iconic yellow triangles and are places children and senior Victorians can turn to when they feel unsafe or need urgent assistance.
Walking School Bus