Print off copies of the map. Tell pupils that they are going to use these to investigate how easy it is for people with a range of impairments to get to school.
Remind them that, as well as walking, some people may come to school by bus or taxi – and that those who come in vehicles may still need to walk or use mobility aids to move between the vehicle and school itself. Others, including wheelchair users, will be able to take a few steps but not to walk or stand for long periods. Some may not see or hear as clearly as other people.
Using the PowerPoint, remind pupils of some of the things they could look out for.
Take them for a walk outside the school. They should each have a copy of the map.
Working in pairs, ask them make notes on their map of any obstacles or barriers that might make it harder for people with a range of impairments to get to school – as well as anything that could be helpful. It may be best to ask some or all pairs to focus on one area. For example:
- Different pairs could consider how things might be for people with a visual or hearing impairment or for those who use wheelchairs or mobility scooters to get about.
- Some pairs could think about people using vehicles and others could think about how they would ‘transfer’ from buses or taxis into the school grounds.
- Some could think about the aspects of the environment around the school that make travel easier, others about what makes it more difficult, eg big busy roads.
They should use their maps to record the information they collect.
Back in the classroom, ask each pair to share their findings, using the smart board map to point out where they are around the school. You could also make a display of all the children’s maps.
Optional additional activities
Depending on pupils’ ability and confidence, other tasks might include the following:
- Some children may never have seen a printed map. Ask them to find their school on a printed map (eg from the Ordnance Survey). Can they also find the street where they live, for example?
- Using the large-scale printed map, work with children to produce a display showing aspects of the environment round the school that are both helpful (dedicated parking bays, dropped curbs, nearby bus stops) and unhelpful (pavement obstacles, bus stops that are some distance from the school) to people with impairments. Take photos and/or write information on cards to illustrate each of these and use map pins and string to show where each is on the map.
- What kind of improvements can they think of that make travel easier for Disabled people – ramps, lifts, hearing loops, textured pavements, large print, allocated spaces for wheelchairs or mobility scooters, raised train platforms (or boarding points) etc.
- What are some of the reasons that these adaptations may not always be effective? For example, lifts or escalators not working, unavailability of staff to assist with manual ramps on trains, overcrowding which may make wheelchair spaces inaccessible.
- On the smart board (or individually on tablets), ask pupils to use Google maps to plan a route between two places on foot, by car or on public transport. Does this include any of the information that a Disabled person might need? Review the sort of information that would be useful. For example, do walking routes indicate where there are steps or narrow pavements? Does the map show which public transport options are accessible?
- Look at maps of the local rail/bus/tram/tube network. Do they include information that might be useful to people with a range of impairments? For example, do they show stations that are step-free? What other information might be helpful – eg the distance between connections?
- Look at the range of information available on the Transport for London (TfL) website for Disabled travellers – or, ideally, at equivalent local information sources. Who is this information useful for? What other options are there for people who can’t use maps because of visual or other impairments? Remind pupils that some Disabled people don’t have or can’t use computers or smartphones. What options are available to them?
- Remind pupils (or introduce the idea) that some people with other impairments – particularly those who are neurodivergent – may also find things like excessive noise or bright lighting difficult to deal with. In lesson 4 we will think about some things that make travelling easier for neurodivergent people.
