Saturday, April 3, 2010
Thursday, February 25, 2010
"Mom, why do most people on our block drive to school?"
We spent our walk coming up with reasons why we drive places instead of walk. Sometimes it's too cold or rainy, sometimes it's too far. Sometimes we have too much to carry. Figuring out why our family drives to the grocery store was pretty easy for Miss K. Understanding that other people draw their lines on "too far/heavy/cold" differently than we do was much more difficult to understand.
We spent our walk coming up with reasons why we drive places instead of walk. Sometimes it's too cold or rainy, sometimes it's too far. Sometimes we have too much to carry. Figuring out why our family drives to the grocery store was pretty easy for Miss K. Understanding that other people draw their lines on "too far/heavy/cold" differently than we do was much more difficult to understand.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
This morning was cold again, with a bit of snow coming down. While crunching the mud along the side of the road,
"Mom, do we have permafrost in Ohio?"
"No, just frozen dirt and mud in the middle of winter."
"Where is there the most permafrost?"
I guessed it might be Canada or some place like that, but I wasn't sure. On her way into her classroom, I promised I'd check with someone at work. Answer: Russia.
"Mom, do we have permafrost in Ohio?"
"No, just frozen dirt and mud in the middle of winter."
"Where is there the most permafrost?"
I guessed it might be Canada or some place like that, but I wasn't sure. On her way into her classroom, I promised I'd check with someone at work. Answer: Russia.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Signs of spring?
Miss K reported that the groundhog did not see his shadow, and therefore we would have an early spring. Immediately thereafter, we got socked with three snow storms.
This morning on the way to school, Miss K noted some of our icicles are gone, and those we took off the house between snow storms are now exposed again in the yard. The grass is now poking through the snow at the edges of sidewalks in places. We walked to school without heavy jackets (though boots because of lots of snow on many sidewalks). Miss K also noted that the air smelled different. Indeed, there's a bit more humidity in the air today.
This morning on the way to school, Miss K noted some of our icicles are gone, and those we took off the house between snow storms are now exposed again in the yard. The grass is now poking through the snow at the edges of sidewalks in places. We walked to school without heavy jackets (though boots because of lots of snow on many sidewalks). Miss K also noted that the air smelled different. Indeed, there's a bit more humidity in the air today.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Columbus city schools closed: No one cleared the sidewalks
With lots of snow in the last two days, all schools in the area were closed yesterday. Columbus called off for today because:
"Superintendent Gene Harris ... she chose to close the schools after touring neighborhoods yesterday afternoon and seeing people walking in the streets because so many sidewalks weren't shoveled."
link here
On the district website: ""Due to the conditions of the side streets and sidewalks where students walk to school and wait for school buses, Columbus City Schools will be closed on Wed., February 17."
There are pretty big consequences to not clearing your sidewalks, even if the city doesn't enforce codes. Kids can't get to school. As a result, thousands of students are out of school (and now will be making up the day in June), and parents either missing work, or otherwise left to scramble for appropriate care.
"Superintendent Gene Harris ... she chose to close the schools after touring neighborhoods yesterday afternoon and seeing people walking in the streets because so many sidewalks weren't shoveled."
link here
On the district website: ""Due to the conditions of the side streets and sidewalks where students walk to school and wait for school buses, Columbus City Schools will be closed on Wed., February 17."
There are pretty big consequences to not clearing your sidewalks, even if the city doesn't enforce codes. Kids can't get to school. As a result, thousands of students are out of school (and now will be making up the day in June), and parents either missing work, or otherwise left to scramble for appropriate care.
Friday, February 12, 2010
Why We Walk
We live 0.3 miles from my daughter's elementary school. We walk to school every single day for a variety of reasons:
*Time: The walk takes no more than 6 minutes under decent walking conditions. I continue on to work either on foot (when cold and icy) or by bicycle. Phil and Mr E pick her up at the end of the school day to walk home.
* Environment: Driving Miss K the 0.3 mile trip to school would be a 1.5 mile trip (considering the longer route required by driving). For drop-off and pick up for approximately 175 school days a year, that’s 525 miles driven unnecessarily. Considering that most of this driving would be done with a cold engine and the trip would require significantly idling, fuel efficiency is a minimum and wear and tear on the car is a maximum.
*Exercise: The 12 minutes of mild physical activity is guaranteed, every single day, without much added logistical effort. That’s about the same as recess.
*Important life skills: Being able to get from home to where you need to go on a regular basis without a car is an important life skill, one which most children are not learning, yet one that will be increasingly important with out uncertain energy future. I want my children to internalize that walking is generally just as easy, and often easier, than taking a car. I want them to know how to walk safely on a sidewalk and make their intentions clear at intersections. I want them to know how to anticipate their own needs for spending a small amount of time outdoors every day – check the weather and consider the need for gloves and a hat, or maybe an umbrella.
Most days we have a lovely walk, giving us a few minutes to chat, observe the rising sun or the setting moon and the changing seasons, all while giving Miss K a few minutes to transition from home to school.
It seems silly to justify the fact that my kids walk to school every single day without exception. However, the norm for the neighborhood is that few kids walk, with last year’s Safe Routes to School survey finding that only 35% of kids arrive at school without a car on days where the weather is warm and dry (33% walk + 2% bicycle).
The CDC “Healthy People 2010” goal is to have 50% of children within a mile of the school walk (and an additional 5% bike within 2 miles). At Barrington, 93% of families report that they live within a mile. To reach the CDC goal, then the target number of kids walking to school is about 350. We currently have about 250 “fair weather” walkers, with significantly fewer walking when cold, snowy, or rainy.
This is a blog about our daily walks to and from school, as well as my family’s efforts to improve our local environment for walking such that more families might be motivated to leave their cars at home and walk as well.
*Time: The walk takes no more than 6 minutes under decent walking conditions. I continue on to work either on foot (when cold and icy) or by bicycle. Phil and Mr E pick her up at the end of the school day to walk home.
* Environment: Driving Miss K the 0.3 mile trip to school would be a 1.5 mile trip (considering the longer route required by driving). For drop-off and pick up for approximately 175 school days a year, that’s 525 miles driven unnecessarily. Considering that most of this driving would be done with a cold engine and the trip would require significantly idling, fuel efficiency is a minimum and wear and tear on the car is a maximum.
*Exercise: The 12 minutes of mild physical activity is guaranteed, every single day, without much added logistical effort. That’s about the same as recess.
*Important life skills: Being able to get from home to where you need to go on a regular basis without a car is an important life skill, one which most children are not learning, yet one that will be increasingly important with out uncertain energy future. I want my children to internalize that walking is generally just as easy, and often easier, than taking a car. I want them to know how to walk safely on a sidewalk and make their intentions clear at intersections. I want them to know how to anticipate their own needs for spending a small amount of time outdoors every day – check the weather and consider the need for gloves and a hat, or maybe an umbrella.
Most days we have a lovely walk, giving us a few minutes to chat, observe the rising sun or the setting moon and the changing seasons, all while giving Miss K a few minutes to transition from home to school.
It seems silly to justify the fact that my kids walk to school every single day without exception. However, the norm for the neighborhood is that few kids walk, with last year’s Safe Routes to School survey finding that only 35% of kids arrive at school without a car on days where the weather is warm and dry (33% walk + 2% bicycle).
The CDC “Healthy People 2010” goal is to have 50% of children within a mile of the school walk (and an additional 5% bike within 2 miles). At Barrington, 93% of families report that they live within a mile. To reach the CDC goal, then the target number of kids walking to school is about 350. We currently have about 250 “fair weather” walkers, with significantly fewer walking when cold, snowy, or rainy.
This is a blog about our daily walks to and from school, as well as my family’s efforts to improve our local environment for walking such that more families might be motivated to leave their cars at home and walk as well.
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