I am afraid of school buses.
Nothing bad has ever happened to me on a bus (except for being excluded from the “way back” by the cool kids). And, I realize that schools have taken steps to make their buses safer for kids.
But, when I was in grade school in the 70’s, I was made to watch a Bus Safety Movie that scarred me for life. It was sort of Scared Straight for 5th graders, minus the jail scenes.
In one scene, a little girl exits the bus and runs in front of it as she crosses the street. Her handmade Valentine card slips from her folder and flutters to the ground, directly in front of the bus’ grill. She stops and runs back to grab her Valentine just as the bus driver steps on the gas. Cut to the Valentine blowing away down the street.
Another scene has a group of kids roughhousing as they climb over a snowbank to get onto the bus. The last kid in line slips and slides down the bank. . .under the bus. Buh-bye.
There were other equally horrifying scenes which probably live on in my subconscious somewhere.
So, while I may not remember a lot of what I was taught in school, I have internalized one thought:
Stay away from the bus.
Maybe THAT is why I homeschool.
Follow
You could not pay me enough money to drive a school bus. I appreciate my sanity waaaaaaaaay too much.
And when my kids sing “The wheels on the bus” at library storytime they always include the verse “The mommies on the bus yell SHUT UP YOU LITTLE BRATS. SHUT UP YOU LITTLE BRATS!” I don’t know where they got that from.
hehehehehe.
I find that at once completely horrible and incredibly smart. I took driver’s ed in an era where they had no problem showing us films of people smeared all over the road. I’ve never had an accident that was my fault. And you’ve never been hit by a school bus, right?
School busses *are* scary. But for some reason, my kids would rather die than let me drive them to school.
Don’t come to Paige’s dance recital then…she is dancing to Wheels on the Bus! I am with you 100% on it. If I didn’t homeschool, there is no way you could get me to put my kids on a bus. And why aren’t there any seatbelts?
WOW. Now that is horrible.
Sounds like it worked though right?
And that is essentially why I walk my kid to school….
Ah, the many ways those after school specials/safety films have scarred us all for life. It’s a thing of beauty, really.
I still have nightmares about our driver’s ed videos showing like disfigured maimed kids who drank and got in the car.
I also still think that you need one car length between you and the car ahead for every 10mph you’re going. I guess those lessons die hard.
Ack! That is scary! I’m glad to have lived in towns with limited buses so never to have ridden on one.