Bike safety
TKI Hot Topic for 1 March 2002
On your bike!
As the school year begins, it is important to make sure that
students have the skills and knowledge to ride safely to and from school
for the rest of the year.
Do you know which side of the bike you should get on and off from? How
do you know if your tyres are safe? How do you indicate that you want
to turn? How long should you indicate for?
These questions only skim the surface of what cyclists need to know before
riding on the road.
The links at the end of this Hot Topic will provide you with tips and
further information to make sure that students are bike safe this year.
Accident statistics
Recent statistics from the Land Transport Safety Authority
(LTSA) show that 16 cyclists have been killed on our roads already in
2002 - double the number killed at the same time in 1998. Last year there
had been only two cycling fatalities up until the end of May.
Causes of cycling accidents
Evidence suggests that the majority of cycling accidents amongst
school students are caused by students not knowing or ignoring the road
rules, wearing poorly fitting helmets, and riding bikes that are too big
for them.
Safe Routes to School
Cycle safety is a part of the Safe Routes to School initiative
that is being run by city and regional councils. The programme is a way
to get the whole school involved in making sure that everyone gets to
school and back home again safe and sound.
Activities such as street mapping and route planning for travelling
to and from school can also be used as teaching and learning opportunities
in the classroom.
Safety, education and fun all in one!
Related Hot Topics
Kidsafe Week (September 2001)
http://www.tki.org.nz/r/hot_topics/kidsafe_e.php
Resources on TKI
Curriculum resources
Taking good care of ourselves - cycling http://english.unitecnology.ac.nz/resources/units/good_care/home.html
How bikes work
Bicycle science http://www.tki.org.nz/r/science/scienceschool/resources/physical/bicyclemoves_e.htm
The science of cycling
http://www.exploratorium.edu/cycling/index.html
Road safety
LTSA bike set up for safety http://www.ltsa.govt.nz/road-user-safety/cyclists/framework.html
Kidsafe 2000 - bike safety
http://www.kidsafe.org.nz/2000
Safe routes to school
http://www.ccc.govt.nz/saferoutes
Cycle safety quiz
http://www.ccc.govt.nz/saferoutes/Games/frmCycleQuiz.asp
Bikewise
http://www.bikewise.co.nz
Cycle helmets
http://www.helmets.org/index.htm
ACC cycle helmet guide
http://www.acc.co.nz/wcm001/idcplg?IdcService=SS_GET_PAGE&ssDocName=WCM001288&ssSourceNodeId=4118
Other bicycle resources on the Web
History of the bicycle
http://sln.fi.edu/pieces/payton/slide.htm
Cycling NZ
http://www.cyclingnz.com/cnz_content.phtml
How bikes work
http://www.howstuffworks.com/bicycle.htm
How mountain bikes work
http://www.howstuffworks.com/mountain-bike.htm
Thinkquest: How bicycles work
http://library.thinkquest.org/J002670/parts.htm
Bicycle physics
Bicycle engineering
http://www.princeton.edu/~asmits/Bicycle_web/bicycle_aero.html
Please note: These links were valid when this page was posted. However the Web is very volatile, and TKI has no control over outside websites. Please let us know if you find anything inappropriate, if you find a broken link, or if you have an update for a link by emailing links@tki.org.nz. Te Kete Ipurangi recommends that teachers view all websites we link to before using them with students.
Back to Top
|
