The Wheels on the Bus

This afternoon I accepted an invitation to ride one of my school's buses as it made the afternoon route. Please note the invitation did not come in a formal manner. It came in the form of hyped-up students that forgot how to properly sit in their seats and how to not break local noise ordinances. I may be exaggerating just a tad, however I am working on a theory that our sweet darlings are currently under some type of effect caused by the super moon. This past Monday, the moon was closer to the Earth than it had been in approximately 68 years. I wonder how kids behaved in school during that cycle back in 1948. What did the schools do? (lol) Even though I could have caught up on office work by answering emails or completing various other to-do-list type items, I did my assistant principal duty and rode the bus.   

What a ride! Now this is not my first bus ride. I try to make rounds riding different buses from time to time. Its a great opportunity to observe and learn about our students. 

There are countless reasons that those of us who work in school should ride a "yellow fellow" from time to time. You have an opportunity to have real conversations with students. While on the bus, you are fair game for the students to fire away at you with questions. Its an up, close, and personal chance to serve as a role model for your students. Your mere presence on the bus makes the ride so much easier for the driver. The ride offers a small glimpse of what school/life is like through the eyes of a child. Bus drivers will love you for it by the way. You get to see where the students live. You will see their parents waiting for them at the stop. You will get a glimpse at younger siblings. You can see their pets in the front yard. BTW, any of these can serve as wonderful conversation topics with students. You gain so much authentic perspective. You create a positive memory. They will remember you riding the bus with them for a long time. I often get stopped in the hallway students referencing our rides together.

I heard Ron Clark say once that all teachers are going to Heaven. I think the same is also true for bus drivers. They deserve a pass to the front of the line at the Pearly Gates! Peter probably ushers them in through a special gate. Is there a more important job in schools? They bring students to and from school. They are in charge of their safety for the journey to and from school. Parents place their kid's lives in their hands on a daily basis. These folks don't get rain passes. They can't stay at home because its Siberia-cold outside. They go to bed early so they can crank their buses at Zero Dark Thirty. It can be really a thankless job. Too often they only hear negative feedback. Do something about that. Bus drivers are the first and last school employees kids see each day. Please take the time to thank a bus driver for what they do! Its an act of love and duty. 

So to all of my fellow educators, I challenge you to....Ride a bus. Support a bus driver. Connect with kids. Make a memory. Gain some perspective. Go ahead, get out there and be awesome!