As I said in my previous post, driving a school bus is every day an adventure. A school bus driver is not just a driver, he is a chaperone, a safety officer as well as a friend for the kids. Creating a rapport with them is essential in promoting safety. One very important procedure in driving a school bus is ‘child check’. After each school drop and at end of each route the driver must park and secure the bus in a safe spot and walk the aisle to check each seat for any sleeping students or left items. Leaving a sleeping student on an unchecked bus is a serious violation with termination or even legal consequences. However, aside from that scary consequences, everything else is just fun.
She is not my friend
I was in my first week of driving the school bus when one morning a little kindergarten girl made a report.
“Bus driver he smacked me,” pointing to a bigger first
“No smacking, no hitting on my bus, please! Be nice to your friend!” I said through the PA system.
“She is not my friend!” the big boy yelled.
Oh my gosh! (Then do whatever you want to do!) 😛😛😛 Life is so boring without them!
Three choices
It was a warm evening, I had just picked up 25 middle school students to drive them home. On the way, while the bus was moving, one big boy kept standing. I asked him to sit down for safety reason, he sat for a second then stood again. I gave him two times reminder through the bus PA. When he stood for the third time I stopped the bus, unbuckled, grabbed the PA mouthpiece, stood up and faced them.
“Hey guys, when I drive this bus I am bound by safety rules and regulations so I can drive you to school and back home safely. Should anything happen to you on this bus I would be the one held responsible. Now you have three choices: We stop here until midnight, or I turn around and drive you back to school, or you sit nice and I drive you home safely.”
This big boy sat and I drove them home safely. 😅
A stop at taco
Early morning on my bus. A young kindergarten girl sitting behind my driver seat threw me a question I was not ready for an answer.
“Bus Driver can we stop at taco?”
” Mmmm … maybe not honey. This is too early. Taco Bell only opens at 9. Besides, they don’t have parking space for a big bus like your bus. What about asking mom and dad for tacos in the evening after school?”
The little girl answered softly: “OK!”
This really breaks my heart. Don’t parents feed their babies before sending them to school? Or, maybe she likes her school bus driver so much? Or, did she know that that day was a free taco day?
Getting to know each other
One morning just before arriving at the elementary school I pulled over and secured the bus. We were a little bit early so I think this would be the right time to know each other better with my little friends. I unbuckled myself and talked to the students through the PA system.
“Kids, I will be your bus driver for the whole school year, so it is good if we know each other better. I will know your name one at a time and I want you to know my name.”
I pulled a piece of paper that had my name printed in big letters.
“Your bus driver is FRANCIUS. Now, say it out loud together. Who is your bus driver?”
All 60 little mouths screamed: “FRANCIUUUUUS ..!”
I was lucky the bus didn’t explode, but if it did it was worth it to make them know and remember their bus driver’s name! 😍
I forgot my backpack
This little kindergarten guy impresses me so much. Each time he steps out of the bus at his stop he gives me a hug and says thank you. One afternoon he did the same thing while his mom watching smiling at what her son did.
“Thank you Bus Driver!” Waylon said.
“Bye Waylon, have a nice evening with mom, buddy!”
Then he stepped down. Just the moment his foot touched the ground he turned around and said:
“Wait!”
“What Waylon?” I asked puzzled.
” I forgot my backpack!”, climbed back into the bus and retrieved his backpack.
Apparently when it comes to hugging his Bus Driver everything else, including his backpack, doesn’t matter. What an amazing little guy!
I am not Adam
Adam is a troublemaker fourth grader. One morning a teacher told me that I need to do something about him because one of her students was bullied by him on the bus and may not want to ride the bus anymore. While waiting for the students to load the bus I talked to Adam.
“Adam, why do you keep harassing other students!” I asked.
“I am not Adam.”
“What is your name?”
“Brian.”
“OK, Brian. Why are you on my bus?”
“I ride this bus every day.”
“No,” I said, “I don’t have Brian in my list. You are riding the wrong bus. Get out and find your bus. But, if you are Adam you can stay as long as you stop bullying, screaming, and standing on the seat. What is your name?”
“Adam.”
Starting that day Adam is a good boy. I never realize that driving a school bus could be this complicated!😅
He stole my backpack
This morning Waylon, the kindergarten boy, gave me another surprise. Arrived at the school I secured the bus, opened the bus door and let the students out. Waylon was about to exit the bus when he pointed to another student who was outside the bus.
“Bus Driver, he stole my backpack!” said he.
“What do you mean by he stole your backpack?”
“That is my backpack!’
“No Waylon, that is his backpack!”
“That is mine!” he said.
“Waylon, your backpack is here, on your back. You are wearing it!”
Waylon sigh: “Oh!”
Then he stepped down the bus. No problem.
I can’t blame him completely. Sometimes I frantically searched my handphone, while talking to it. Or, my wife looking for her glasses when she was wearing them! But, this is a big backpack! 😅
Not your business
I was driving my bus in the afternoon run to take the elementary school kids home. Just before the last stop kids were yelling loudly.
“Bus driver! He missed his stop!”
“What? Who is he?”
“There in the back!” kids pointed to a boy in the back.
I stopped the bus, secured it and walked the aisle to see the boy.
“Where is your stop?”
“Back there. After the Greenburg street,” he said.
“Why did you miss it?”
“I was sleeping.”
“OK don’t worry I’ll drive you to your stop. Just show me when we pass it.”
After dropping everyone I had to make a second loop to find this boy’s stop. But every time he said that it’s not his stop.
“Where is your stop?” I asked.
“I don’t know.”
Oh my gosh! How can I get this boy home?
After making the whole run finally, at one stop, he said this is his stop, exited the bus and run home. What a relieve! But I need to write on my daily report that I used more mileage because of his sleeping on the bus.
Next morning one of the girls asked him why he slept on the bus.
The boy said: “Not your business!”
He didn’t realize that it was my serious business to get him home! Kids are kids!
Three little words
It was one afternoon pick-up time at the Middle School. I was sitting in my driver seat and the Middle School. Students just boarded my bus for home when a male teacher or admin entered the bus to give the students some words.
“I have some report that some student hit another student. I will follow this incident seriously. Every student has the right to ride the school bus without fear. I expect you show courtesy to fellow students!” he said.
Then he left the bus, without saying a word to me, no ‘hi’, no ‘thank you’, no ‘excuse me’, no ‘i am sorry’, no nothing, when he should have known that this is my bus and I am the captain. The students looked at me curiously at what just happened, a teacher preached them ‘courtesy’ when he didn’t show any at all. I wanted to grab my PA and set it external to say ‘thank you’ on the speaker outside. But, I decided not to.
It showed me a serious failure in the education system when teachers don’t seriously think that kids learn better through examples rather than by scolding them. But, what the heck, I am just a school bus driver, why should I know better. It only convinced me that the three most-difficult-to-say little words are: please, sorry and thank you! Please share what you think! And wait for my next