When it comes to car and road safety awareness in schools, the Georgia Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Keep Georgia Safe program truly stands out.
We selected Keep Georgia Safe as a Teacher Pick because it’s comprehensive, interactive, and meets the needs of both teachers and students in a fun and meaningful way. Here are some of the highlights you’ll find on the website, GARoadSafety.com, and a quick look at some of the teachers resources included in this program.
- Interactive games: Fun and engaging activities that teach road safety concepts.
- Lesson plans: Ready-to-use materials tailored for middle and high school classrooms.
- Posters: Eye-catching visuals to promote safety awareness in and around schools.
- Videos: Informative and engaging content to reinforce safety messages.
- Kahoot Quizzes: Interactive quizzes to test students’ knowledge in a playful way.
These materials not only align with educational goals but also keep students engaged and eager to participate. To see how it performs in real-world classrooms, we asked middle and high school teacher Emily Wilde to put the Keep Georgia Safe program to the test. Here’s her honest review.
How did you use the Keep Georgia Safe materials in your classroom?
We spent a week doing lessons and mini projects. We also loved the distracted-driving game. After using the available lessons on inertia and speed, students worked in pairs and chose one of three projects. They could create their own PSA on safe driving, write a letter to leadership, or design their own roundabout.
What did you like most as a teacher?
I loved the straightforward layout of the lesson plans. They were so easy to follow. I also loved the variety. My students couldn’t believe I was encouraging them to play a video game in class! We all had so much fun with it.
What did students like most from the road safety materials?
My students LOVED the game on distracted driving! One student even told me how frustrating it was that the passenger kept doing things to make it harder for them to drive. Another student told them, “That’s the point!”
Overall for the materials, students were so engaged because they were so directly applicable in their lives. As they join the community of drivers, my students liked spending time thinking about things like the science behind why safe driving habits are so important and steps they can take in their own lives. I loved listening to the thoughtful conversations that came up while they were working together.
How did this make your job as a teacher easier?
The layout of the lesson plans made things so much easier for me. Not only were the instructions clear, but they also laid out the time required, materials, prep work, and objectives. These materials provided everything I needed to teach my students about safe driving at such an important time in their lives.
How will you use the Keep Georgia Safe materials in the future?
We have added the driving video game to our list of “May Do” activities after they have finished their work for my class. I’ll definitely use this lesson year after year!
Check out Emily’s video review.
Teacher Picks is a sponsored program available from We Are Teachers. All opinions shared in the review are honest and based on the teacher’s direct experience. To learn more about our guidelines and review process, click here.
