ThinkFast Interactive brings a safety experience to schools

ThinkFast teams travel around the country and provide these hour-long educational programs on various topics.

What would you say or do if your friend was drinking or driving, or texting and driving? These are common questions that participants in the ThinkFast Interactive experiential program may be expected to respond to by acting out a scenario during an event that is visiting schools this week in Kansas.

ThinkFast Interactive is an event that travels across the country to teach teens important safety topics using culturally relevant sources and breakout sessions. Some topics include driver safety and traffic awareness, alcohol safety and awareness and drug misuse and abuse prevention.

Laura Moore, the Seatbelts Are for Everyone State Coordinator for the Kansas Traffic Safety Resource Office, said that the organization is based out of Michigan and has four teams that travel across the country and present to middle schools, high schools, colleges and community events.

Hundreds of high school students had the chance to learn about traffic safety behaviors in a fun and entertaining game show-style format. 

“The focus of each presentation can differ, but in Kansas we always focus on traffic safety,” Moore said. “The hour-long presentation is fun, hands on and completely interactive for the students. They compete against each other with questions, dance-offs and other theatrical events. There are multiple opportunities for students to win prizes so it’s also fun for them to walk away with a prize too.”

Moore said that over the years, different schools involved in the SAFE program have been selected to host ThinkFast.

“We hope students leave each presentation with a better understanding and appreciation of Kansas traffic law as well as a few reminders and facts related to seat belt use and risky driving prevention that they can share with family and friends,” Moore said.

“It has been beyond fun and so rewarding to see more than 500 high school students get excited, yell and dance about traffic safety,” Moore said.  “It’s a great change for students, teachers and administrators and it’s all sponsored by KDOT. We are able to reach the population with the highest risk in a fun way. As far as traffic safety education in high schools, I really don’t think it can get any better."

For more information, or to experience what ThinkFast Interactive is like, visit the website at www.thinkfastinteractive.com.