Road safety for early childhood
A leading cause of death of infants and young children (birth to 5 years of age) involves tragic incidents with motor vehicles. These vulnerable people are exploring their environment while they lack the skills necessary to identify and react to hazards and dangerous situations.
As a parent, carer or educator, you have a critical role in teaching children about road safety concepts during the early years of their life.
Developed by early childhood and road safety experts, these National Practices for Early Childhood Road Safety Education will help guide your education programs, while also ensuring that all lessons are aligned to the Early Years Learning Framework.
Planning guides
For your use when planning your road safety activities, we have developed a set of explanatory guides detailing the National Practices, as well as practice suggestions.
- National practice 1- Holistic approaches – Recognise that children’s learning is integrated and interconnected when making curriculum decisions about road safety education.
- National practice 2 - Responsiveness to children – Deliver road safety education which is responsive to individual children and extends children’s strengths, knowledge and interests.
- National practice 3 - Learning through play – Through play-based learning seek opportunities to address road safety in a way that expands children’s thinking and encourages problem solving.
- National practice 4 - Intentional teaching – Engage in intentional teaching which extends and expands children’s learning about road safety.
- National practice 5 - Learning environments – Provide opportunities in the learning environment, including the local community, for safe and meaningful interaction with children, parents and carers about road safety.
- National practice 6 - Cultural competence – Implement road safety education that is culturally relevant for the diversity of children, their families and the community.
- National practice 7 - Continuity of learning and transitions – Use the opportunity of transitions, in active partnership with children, families and the local community, for road safety education.
- National practice 8 - Assessment for learning – Together with children and families, reflect on each child’s learning and application of road safety to plan for future learning.