The Kaohsiung Public Library (KPL), the Ministry of the Interior's National Land Management Agency, and the Transportation Bureau of the Kaohsiung City Government have collaborated to launch the “Reading and Road Traffic: Slow, Watch, Stop” Program. Joining hands with No Tail and Banana Animal School, the program invited young students from Sinyi Primary School to be its first event attendees on June 4, 2025. Organized at the Sinsing Branch Library's Sinsing Reading Room, “Human-Centered Road Traffic Games and Workshop for Young Pet Owners” is an interdisciplinary activity for children that enables its young participants to delve into a series of unique experiences centralized around their animal reading companions and human-centered road traffic education. The event combines road traffic-relevant concepts, reading literacy, and life education, guiding primary school students to understand the spirit of “prosperous coexistence between humans and animals” through games and practical activities. 

Picture 1: The Kaohsiung Public Library (KPL), the Ministry of the Interior's National Land Management Agency, and the Transportation Bureau of the Kaohsiung City Government have collaborated to launch the “Reading and Road Traffic: Slow, Watch, Stop” Program. Joining hands with No Tail and Banana Animal School, the program organized the “Human-Centered Road Traffic Games and Workshop for Young Pet Owners” event and invited young students from Sinyi Primary School to be its first attendees on June 4, 2025.

According to KPL Director Chin-Yang Lee, the “Reading and Road Traffic: Slow, Watch, Stop” Program provides the library with a platform for cross-disciplinary activities and events involving culture, education, and road traffic-relevant issues. Innovative experiences and curriculum design have enabled reading to reach beyond the boundaries of book pages and into the streets, citizens’ lives, and even society. Sinsing Branch Library's Sinsing Reading Room will continue to hold interdisciplinary events to combine reading with other fields of knowledge and initiative, providing citizens an opportunity for cultural participation and cultivating themselves to live as a member of society. 

Picture 2: As proactive participants of the event, the children began to reflect on the responsibilities and proper behavior of a “pet owner.”

Organizers invited a team of trained canines and their owners for the event. The event curator, Chin-Lun Lee, personally guided young participants to read picture books and act out scenario simulations alongside their new animal reading companions and interactive games in a safe and friendly environment. The children took up roles as “young pet owners,” learning about road traffic regulations and basic etiquette. They learned that pedestrians should be prioritized when crossing roads and the proper usage of public areas, where all citizens must respect each other. As proactive participants of the event, the children began to reflect on the responsibilities and proper behavior of a “pet owner.”

According to No Tail and Banana Animal School, pets are more than just family members for their owners. Pets can also become a medium for learning and interaction. Through companionship-based education, children can learn to overcome their fear and unfamiliarity to animals. The presence of pets had further elevated the event to become more concrete and realistic, embedding road traffic education into schools and daily life. The event's activities also delved into human-centered road traffic principles, such as the pedestrian's guide to “slow down, look around, and stop” when crossing streets or the responsibility of pet owners to “carry their pets” in their arms. These activities help children form correct understanding and conceptions from an early age, internalize them, and apply them in their daily lives.

Picture 3 and 4: Organized at the Sinsing Branch Library's Sinsing Reading Room, “Human-Centered Road Traffic Games and Workshop for Young Pet Owners” enables its young participants to delve into a series of unique experiences centralized around their animal reading companions and human-centered road traffic education. The event combines road traffic-relevant concepts, reading literacy, and life education, guiding primary school students to understand the spirit of “prosperous coexistence between humans and animals” through games and practical activities.

For children and adults who love animals and are concerned about road traffic issues – this is definitely the one event you won't want to miss! KPL Sinsing Reading Branch is holding a second workshop at 2-4 PM on June 28, 2025, which your beloved beloved pets can join for free. Complete the mission to take a walk alongside your pet dog around the city and apply friendly road traffic principles into your daily life.