SeDoMoCha Elementary students get on board with bus safety poster contest
DOVER-FOXCROFT — Older students at the SeDoMoCha Elementary School put their art skills to the test while thinking about the proper way to travel to and from classes by taking part in the National School Bus Safety Poster Contest.
“We had all second- through fourth-graders do a bus poster for the bus poster contest,” elementary art teacher Martha Ladd said, as the 2018 competition theme was “My School Bus, the Safest Form of Transportation.”
“We had a committee of judges come in and they chose these submissions,” Ladd said, explaining the contest features a kindergarten through grade 2 division and another class for third- and fourth-graders.
In the younger division grade 2 student Effie Brochu earned top honors with Ava Dunton finishing in second place and Kennady Guptill having the third-place piece of art.
Third-grader Garrett Rogers created the winning poster for the grade 3-4 division at SeDoMoCha. Elementary. Placing second was fourth-grader Aidan Bryant and Rory Guptill came in third — as the pair of sisters had prize-winning posters. Each of the six winners earned a ribbon to take home on the last day of school on June 15.
“These six go to the state level competition, they will represent SeDoMoCha for the state of Maine,” Ladd said.
“It’s a great end of the year activity,” she said. “The kids love the competition and it’s a great way to end the year.”
Rowell’s Garage Transportation Director Jenny Chase said the Maine Association for Pupil Transportation (MAPT) will be holding its annual conference next month in Sugarloaf. Chase said MAPT is the only industry-comprised group of transportation personnel from all over the state, and members are dedicated to continuous training and education of school bus drivers, monitors and mechanics.
At the July MAPT conference the various school-level bus safety poster contest winners will be judged to determine which works of art will then qualify for the nation-wide competition through the National Association for Pupil Transportation.
“Last year we had one poster from each division go to the national competition,” Ladd said, with 2017 being the first year of participation for SeDoMoCha Elementary.
Observer photo/Stuart Hedstrom
BUS SAFETY POSTER CONTEST WINNERS — A half dozen SeDoMoCha Elementary School students, three in two age-group divisions, earned ribbons for placing at the school-level competition and qualifying for the states in the 2018 National School Bus Safety Poster Contest, with the posters having a theme of “My School Bus, the Safest Form of Transportation.” From left are first place grade 3-4, third-grader Garrett Rogers; second-place, fourth-grader Aidan Bryant and third place, third-grader Rory Guptill; first-place for grade 2, Effie Brochu; second place, Ava Dunton; and third place, Kennady Guptill.