For 66 fifth graders at Beverly Park Elementary School, the end of the school year came with a memorable surprise: a brand-new bicycle to take home, along with a helmet, light and bike lock.
The giveaway followed the completion of the Let’s Go bicycle education unit in PE, a program from Cascade Bicycle Club that teaches students the fundamentals of bicycle safety, builds confidence and encourages the joy of riding.
Longtime Beverly Park PE teacher Heidi Jacobson, retiring this spring, has taught the bicycle education program for years and said the experience is fun and memorable for students.
“Some students in fifth grade have never had the opportunity to learn how to ride a bike,” Heidi said. “It is something they will never forget. For fifth graders to get a free bike at the end of the unit makes it so awesome!”
The Let’s Go bicycle education program is offered in nine Highline elementary schools as part of fifth grade PE. Cascade Bicycle Club trains PE teachers, collaborates on schedules, delivers and maintains a fleet of learning bicycles and helmets, provides curriculum supplies and staff support, and recently has facilitated the distribution of free bicycles at the giveaway.
This year, Cascade Bicycle Club gave out more than 400 bikes and gear to fifth graders at six Highline schools: Beverly Park, White Center Heights, Mount View, Madrona, Hilltop and Midway.
At Beverly Park, staff helped students select the right size bicycle and get fitted with helmets, locks and lights. The event sent students home with new skills, new wheels and a joyful start to summer.
Cascade Bicycle Club's Let's Go Program for bicycle education is supported with funding from Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) through Washington’s Climate Commitment Act (CCA). The CCA supports Washington’s climate action efforts by putting cap-and-invest dollars to work reducing climate pollution, creating jobs, and improving public health. Information about the CCA is available at climate.wa.gov.
Pictured from left to right: Arone Andu, community partnerships manager; Roderick Branca, family engagement specialist; Heidi Jacobson, Beverly Park PE teacher (retiring this spring); Jill Reeder, instructional specialist; Brooke Beckwith, youth programs senior manager, Cascade Bicycle Club; and Tom Parker, Let's Go manager, Cascade Bicycle Club.
On the left, a photo shows the boxes of bicycle locks and other gear, stop signs and fifth graders and families in line to pick out a new bicycle. On the right, a photo shows fifth grade students learning to ride bicycles and use hand traffic signals during PE.