We visited 34 classes from primary schools in Pruszków in the last two weeks. Action is our response to the fatal accident that happened in Pruszków on April 4. We offered the action to the City Hall in Pruszków. We talk to children about what happened, we talk about what adults can do for children, we talk about what children can do for adults for road safety. We were also in "this" school and in "this" class.
Dressed in high-visibility, accompanied by a city guard, I began each class with the sentence: "We are here to talk about the accident on April 4 that killed your friend from school number 2." Unfortunately, adults always come after the fact, make sad eyes, try to fix the world with one word. Then a series of short questions: did you hear about this accident? ¾ of the children answered in the affirmative. Did your parents talk to you about this incident? Most of the children answered yes. "And what did they tell you?" "Be careful", "you have to be careful". Fourth question: "Did they say what it means?" Silence. Maybe in two of the 34 classes I visited, a parent made more effort. "So today I'm going to explain to you what your parents meant by 'be careful'.
“I will speak to you as adults, because you live in a world created by adults,” I said to the children. "And in this world, no woo woo woo." It was enough to throw a password for children to start giving examples. The teachers also opened up. They've seen a lot too. Apart from the fact that both children and teachers saw a lot, they did nothing. Hence, we gave the children homework, so that my visit would not only drown out the consciences of adults. "Oh, there was an accident, something needs to be done, let's have a talk." What will the children's response be? I don't know. What will be the response of adults when children voice their concerns? Kiss-off or try to fix the places they don't feel safe? Even if the kids don't do their homework, we'll write down all the stories we hear. Some of these stories made my eyes as big as a €1 coin.
Children see, observe and absorb perfectly. "Sometimes we wait 5 vehicles before someone stops" - said the boys from "two" (school no. 2). "Sometimes I can't cross because the drivers are standing on the crosswalk" - said the boys from "eight". "Oh! I know this place! - shouted one of the girls - "my mother thinks this place is very dangerous." The presentation, apart from theory, was packed with examples from Pruszków. The intersection to which the girl reacted spontaneously is practically new, yet pedestrians and drivers do not see each other. Children from class 3b (that class) did not fully understand what had happened, despite the fact that there was no the girl in the bench, despite the fact that they had attended the funeral, despite the fact that the girl's sister attended the same class. Where I have been twice because of the plan, the children recognized me "Oh! Mr. Adam!". How many heads do they have left? In class 4a at school number 5 I got applause. I guess that's good, right?
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