The City of Calgary kicked off Safety Expo, a three-day virtual learning event for Grade 5 and 6 students, with an interactive presentation by Inside Education and ENMAX at Hawkwood School.
Safety Expo incorporates safety themes outlined in school curriculums by offering digital presentations, workshops and online exhibitor content as educational tools.
The theme of this year’s annual event is: Creating belonging in our community. The guiding principle being that when students play and interact with each other, they create a sense of belonging for themselves and others; contributing to wellness and community safety.
“This year, we want to challenge everyone participating to think about how you can spread kindness to build trust in your schools and communities. When we support each other, we help make our city a safe place to live and play,” Mayor Jyoti Gondek said, while virtually welcoming the student to the event.
Students at Hawkwood School participated in games where they learned about electricity safety, how electricity is generated, and energy sources, and dressed in safety gear.
“We are here to share safety tips and tricks with students on how to be safe around electricity, by learning about how electricity can interact with water, how to be safe with insulators and conductors and more,” said Mila Mezei, Education Program Lead, Inside Education.
“We learned about what the electrician’s job was, and I got to dress up as the electrician with all the heavy gear,” said Simon, Grade 5 student.
“Don’t fly kites near powerlines and the voltage of the transformers is very high, so it is very dangerous to play near those,” said Simon, as safety tips that he would offer to other students following the presentation.
“Understanding the vital role electricity plays in our lives is important. ENMAX is proud to support The City of Calgary’s Safety Expo, where we get the chance to equip kids early on with electricity basics and safety knowledge so they can protect themselves—whether at home, school or during play,” said Chris Smith, Director, Safety and Environment Services.
Now in its 21st year, Safety Expo remains a free event for students and exhibitor participation, thanks to The City of Calgary’s partnerships with community, not-for-profit and corporate organizations who provide both financial and in-kind contributions that make these learning experiences possible. Since its inaugural year, over 80,000 students and their teachers have participated.
Calgarians and teachers can use the content and digital presentations for further online and classroom learning following the event, available at Calgary.ca/safetyexpo.
