School bus driver's psychology

by Ron Pooler
(Everett, Washington USA)

I am retired now, but a number of years ago when I began driving a school bus, I was indoctrinated by experienced drivers giving me pointers on what to do and not do in order to survive.

I was given a high school bus route in a newly developed upscale community, where the students were rumored to be spoiled and unpleasant. This route was deemed to be my "trial by fire."

So, to properly prepare I had to come up with a plan to minimize the anticipated impact. Fortunately, the route began the first day of school with the students a bit lethargic first thing in the morning.

I had picked up the last student and was headed toward the High School and traveling along a two lane rural road with light traffic. When I saw there was no approaching and following traffic, I stopped the bus, set the air brake and sat there still while bowing my head. There was dead silence on that bus for approx a minute or so, when a male voice said, "wassup?"

I replied, "Could we please have a few moments of silence please?" Again, dead silence, then a female voice very gently asked, "What for?" To which I replied, "Road Kill!" It remained quiet on that bus all the way to school.

From that point on through the year that group of students were the best behaved and respectful group you could ever ask for. Later in the year I happened to be listening to a couple of other drivers talking about a student from my bus that was describing me to another student and said that I was their psycho bus driver.

I figure, whatever works is fair in love and war and driving a school bus.