For secondary school levels:
- s5
Passenger responsibilities – seatbelts
To ensure that young people understand the benefits of wearing a seatbelt and the consequences of travelling without one.
Learning objectives
Collisions on our roads remain one of the main causes of accidental deaths among children and young people in Scotland. This resource has been developed to help equip students with the knowledge, skills, and confidence they need to make positive choices on and around our roads.
By the end of Lesson 5, students will be able to describe how the seatbelt acts as a safety device, develop an understanding of the risks of not wearing a seatbelt, and evaluate the impact they as a passenger can have on others.
Find all downloadable resources below.
Overview
Not wearing a seatbelt can have a massive impact. Be aware of the benefits of wearing a seatbelt and the consequences of travelling without one.
Activity 1
Seatbelts Save Lives – 20 mins
What does the evidence say?
- Seatbelts are one of the most important safety measures in the vehicle
- Wearing a seatbelt will reduce both fatal and non-fatal injuries by 60% for front seat passengers and 44% for rear seat passengers
Show students the video of crash test which compares with and without seatbelts. Invite students to share their main takeaways from the video.
- Were they surprised about the impact that seatbelts have?
- Did they realise the impact on the people in the front if the rear passenger does not have a seatbelt on?
Activity 2
No Excuse! – 20 mins
The purpose of this activity is to get students to start thinking common excuses used around seatbelt use and the misconceptions that exist.
Encourage discussion after each one.
I’m only going round the corner and I’ll drive really slowly. –> Most crashes happen within 2.5 miles of home and at speeds of less than 35mph.
Seatbelts are uncomfortable and restraining. –> Seatbelts can be uncomfortable to start with but you get used to them. As for restraining, that’s what they are supposed to do!
Downloadable materials
Explore the downloadable materials for this lesson, including a PDF outline for quick reference and a PowerPoint presentation.