He didn’t think he was “too young” to do something, and he didn’t wait for someone else to help — he just jumped into action.
Thirteen-year-old Jeremy Wuitschick is being hailed as a hero after he saved the schoolbus he was riding in and its passengers.
Wuitschick and about a dozen other kids were riding in the schoolbus on their way to Surprise Lake Middle School, in Milton, Washington (near Seattle). All of a sudden, the schoolbus driver had a seizure. In this case, a seizure is a medical condition that caused the bus driver to uncontrollably twist around in his seat. He lost control of the bus, which veered off the road, according to the Los Angeles Times news website.
A video camera on board the bus caught what happened next. As soon as the bus driver began to have his seizure, Jeremy Wuitschick leaped out of his seat and grabbed the steering wheel. He steered the bus safely to the side of the road and then turned the engine off. He even opened the doors so the other kids could leave the bus.
At that point, a passing motorist jumped on board and tried to help the bus driver, who was later taken to hospital. The bus driver is in serious condition in hospital, according to news service Associated Press (AP).
AP reported that the kids regularly receive training in emergency procedures so they will know what to do in case anything like this happens. And when it did, Wuitschick was able to remember his training and put it to good use.
Wuitschick said he wishes he could have done more. He said he wants to learn CPR (a life-saving technique that can help someone who has stopped breathing).
The LA Times website has a video of the event (via Fox News), including video of Wuitschick jumping out of his seat and grabbing the steering wheel of the bus. (Video: 2:37) Note – this link will take you to the LA Times website which is not specifically kid-friendly so kids should have adult supervision.
LA Times/Fox News video of dramatic bus incident.
CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS
By Jonathan Tilly
Writing/Discussion Prompt
Jeremy Wuitschick is a hero because he saved the lives of his fellow passengers. How might what happened on the bus, change his life forever?
Reading Prompt: Reading Fluently
Reading fluently helps readers understand texts. When reading, it’s important to read commas as short pauses. Pausing for commas helps readers and listeners understand sentences as smaller chunks. Reread today’s article to a friend and make sure to pause briefly when you see a comma.
Primary
Read appropriate texts at a sufficient rate and with sufficient expression to convey the sense of the text readily to the reader and an audience (OME, Reading: 3.3).
Junior & Intermediate
Read appropriate texts with expression and confidence, adjusting reading
strategies and reading rate to match the form and purpose(OME, Reading: 3.3).
Grammar Feature: Verbs That Excite
There is a lot of action in this story. That’s probably why the author used very active verbs such as “jumping” and “grabbing.” Find eight other exciting verbs in this article. For each exciting verb that you find, think of another exciting verb you could use to say the same thing.
