Waitaki will have 300 more clued up kids, after a two-day event held in Ōamaru this week.

The Waitaki Clued Up Kids event is held every year, with year 6 pupils gathering at the Waitaki Recreation Centre to learn about keeping themselves safe in a variety of scenarios.

Schools taking part span from Palmerston, north to Glenavy and inland as far as Waitaki Valley.

Eleven different community organisations, some volunteers, held 10-minute interactive presentations on Wednesday and Thursday (August 2-3) for the children, who are mostly aged 10 or 11.

Police, with the help of Sport Waitaki, educate pupils from Weston School on scooter safety on the road and footpaths.

This age is chosen, because the children are becoming more independent as they approach their teenage years, Te Whatu Ora public health nurse Fiona Stratford said

The learning objectives are to become more aware of personal safety, learn how to react in dangerous situations, know what role the emergency services play, and foster good citizenship.

Supporting Te Whatu Ora in sponsoring the event is Emergency Management Otago, and Network Waitaki.

Some of the tips the children picked up were around keeping themselves safe on roads, near firearms, on quad bikes, near irrigation races, interacting with dogs, and in an earthquake or fire. They also had a brief lesson in CPR, and received some mental health tips.

Pupils from St Joseph's and Kakanui Schools learn how to perform CPR in time with a song, with guidance from St John in Schools.

Fenwick School pupils are guided by Dynamic Development occupational therapist Abbey McKenzie in some mindfulness.

Hayley Lawrence from Vetlife talks to Kakanui and St Joseph's School pupils about safety around dogs.