Safety Town Tualatin is back for a second year and is expanding the program to include grades 2 through 5. In its inaugural year, Safety Town Tualatin hosted over 75 rising kindergarten and 1st-grade campers from the region to teach them about safety through activities, songs, art and special community heroes like firefighters and police officers.
Young campers were eager to begin each day in their color-coded groups led by local high school and college students. The groups could be heard singing: “9-1-1, 9-1-1, Press the buttons, 9-1-1, If you are hurt or scared or don’t know what to do, 9-1-1 sends help to you!” to the tune of This Old Man or chanting: “Red means STOP – Green means GO – Yellow means go really SLOW!” Guest speakers included ambulance drivers, lifeguards, the County Sheriff’s office, the American Red Cross and more. Campers worked daily on their pedestrian and motorist skills in Safety Town: a real town simulation crafted with child-sized dwellings, traffic signs and lights, as well as streets and crosswalks. Safety Town is a busy place where campers drove tricycles (with their helmets on and buckled, of course -there’s a song about that), walked stuffed dogs on leashes, delivered mail to the Safety Town mailbox, or pushed babies in strollers on the sidewalks. The week culminated with the campers taking a school bus trip to New Seasons Market, where campers crossed four crosswalks with lights, as well as learned about grocery store etiquette and safety.
This year, Safety Town Tualatin is expanding. It will have two 1-week camps for kindergarten through 2nd graders and two 1-week camps for 3rd through 5th graders. Activities will be equally engaging for the older age group with topics such as Pedestrian & Bike Safety, Fire, First Aid & Staying Home Alone, Internet/Technology, Drugs/Alcohol & Poison Control, Conflict management, etc.
Tualatin Together Executive Director Cyndy Hillier is the driving force behind bringing Safety Town Tualatin to life. When asked about expanding the offering to all grade school students, Cyndy said, “We are very excited about rolling this out to the older ages. The camp was so well received last year. It only made sense to expand the program to serve the needs of older youth. Third through fifth graders will learn through an interactive curriculum designed with multiple field trips and speakers. Throughout the week, campers will create a camper-designed mastery project including songs, skits and creative ways to share what they have learned throughout the week.”
Registration for all weeks of Safety Town Tualatin opens March 3 and can be accessed at tualatintogether.org/programs/#safety-town.
Applications for counselors, ages 15 and over and volunteer junior counselors, ages 12-14, will be available beginning March 3 as well on the Tualatin Together website. Counselors receive 8-12 hours of training specific to the Safety Town Tualatin curriculum and age-appropriate skill building.
Tualatin Safety Town
Dates: Rising K-2: July 7-11 or July 14-18
3rd-5th: July 21-25 or July 28-August 1
Cost: $289 through April 15, with a 5% sibling discount. Limited scholarships are available.
Register: tinyurl.com/3fsdzhbw
