Does Your Child Ride the Bus to School?by Michele Cheplic | More from this Blogger 22 Aug 2009 07:51 AM My baby starts kindergarten in a couple weeks, and up until last week I knew exactly how she was getting there. We live a mere 3.5 miles from my daughter's school. That's walking distance in our world. Plus, it's not all up hill, and she wouldn't be trudging through snow barefoot to get there. Still, because of logistical factors the decision to drive her in the family car was made and that was that... until last week. That's when we received a postcard from the bus company detailing when and where our kindergartener should stand if she wanted a free ride to school. The offer intrigued my daughter, and after a short discussion we decided that she would give the bus a try during the second week of school. Of course, I plan to follow the bus and meet her at school (isn't that what all first time parents do?), you know... just in case. Personally, I give the bus ride thing a week... tops. I know my daughter. She loves trying new things, but the novelty wears off real quick. She'll be back in her carseat telling me how to drive by mid-September. Still, there is a teeny tiny chance I could be wrong. My daughter could end up loving riding the bus to school. I just hope nothing bad happens to her on the bus, and I end up like that mom from Richwood, Louisiana. According to reports, the 29-year-old mother was arrested for beating her daughter's school bus driver earlier this week. Reports say the woman faces charges of battery of a schoolteacher and simple battery of the infirm. Basically, the mom lost it after her daughter accused the bus driver of being mean to her. Police say to retaliate the mom struck the bus driver in the mouth, causing bleeding. Then, when a 60-year-old woman tried to intervene, the mom allegedly pushed her down, causing her head to strike against the floor. Yeah... I'm thinking that's not the way to roll if things don't go well on your kid's bus ride to school. Do your kids ride the bus to school? Related Articles: Homemade Back-to-School Treats: Chocolate Chip Cookies and Peanut Butter French Fries Driven to Distraction: Behind the Wheel with a Preschooler Learn more about Michele Cheplic  Michele Cheplic was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii, but now lives in Wisconsin. Michele graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Journalism. Relevantparenting tags User Comments Samual (11722) 22 Aug 2009 09:20 AMHere we don't have school buses, you just get a public bus. So you have to get a bus from where you live, to the bus station and then another bus from the bus station to a bus stop near school. Normally though the local council but a few extra busses on during school starting and leaving hours that go along the route near schools from the bus station. I drive Micheal to school on the way to work, here most bus companies would not allow a child under 10 to travel alone and those who do, only allow travel during daylight hours, so during the winter they cannot get the bus to school alone.  Michele Cheplic (37339) 22 Aug 2009 03:47 PMGeesh Samual, what time do those kids need to get up in the morning to get to school? Sounds like a long commute. They probably spend a ton of time riding. I'm surprised they don't fall asleep en route and miss their stop. I would never let my kid (even a 10-year-old) ride solo. OK, maybe a 16 or 17-year-old, but nothing younger. Samual (11722) 23 Aug 2009 11:49 AMHere school starts at 9 am, it is about a 15 minute journey to the bus station from the furthest part of town then a 5ish minute journey from the bus station to the Welsh school, its about 10 minutes to the english school. Michele Cheplic (37339) 28 Aug 2009 04:43 AMThat's not nearly as bad as I thought it would be. Some kids around here who live in rural areas spend 2 hours on the bus (roundtrip) each day. Community Tags bus, kids and bus, parents and school bus, school bus, school Discuss this article
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