Day 1 activity: Cycling for Everyone
Key info:
- 30 minutes
- Solo or group activity
Objective: Learn about different types of cycles and cycle users. Learn about different types of cycling infrastructure.
Resources needed: Poster paper, coloured pencils or pens.
Activity outline: In groups or alone, pupils research types of adapted cycle, e-cycle, cargo cycle and trailers, as well as infrastructure to support the use of cycles in towns and cities.
Create a poster promoting cycles as a mode of transport for everyone.
Download: Cycling for Everyone teacher notes
Today’s classroom quiz: Join in the fun on Kahoot and take on our Cycling for Everyone quiz.
Extension: + 20 minutes
Get your class to present their posters and talk about their ideas for making cycling more inclusive for everyone.
Talk about the features of each type of cycle and, using the guidance sheet, ask the class who it could be particularly suitable for.
Inspired by: Bike It At Home – developed by our London Schools Officers during lockdown.
Additional information from Wheels for Wellbeing.
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Day 2 activity: The cycling holiday of a lifetime
Key info:
- 30 minutes
- Solo or group activity
Objective: Locating countries of the world, identifying similarities and differences and developing a cycle trip itinerary.
Resources needed:
Activity outline:
- Pupils imagine they are cycling across the world. (Either provide specific countries for pupils/groups of pupils or they choose their own)
- Using The Cycling Holiday of a Lifetime sheet, pupils investigate facts about their chosen country (capital, flag, food, drink, landmarks to visit etc.) and decide what they may need to take with them when cycling across it (waterproofs, sunhat, binoculars, water etc.)
Today's Quiz: Join in the fun on Kahoot and take on our Cycling around the world quiz
Extension: + 20 to 30 minutes
To make this learning active, display the completed the Cycling holiday of a lifetime sheets around the learning space, create mini passports for pupils to travel around and visit the sheets, noting facts as they go. How many different places and facts can they explore on their world tour?
Inspired by
This learning resource is brought to you by our Bike to School Week partner, the Bikeability Trust, from their “Tools for Schools”.
Find out more and access their free toolkit for schools to promote and celebrate cycling.
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Day 3 activity: My journey to school
Key info:
- 15-20 minutes
- Solo or group activity
Objective: Pupils think about their journey to school and discuss their experiences.
Resources needed: Printed storyboards, pencil and paper
Activity outline: Ask the pupils to draw a short storyboard of their journey to school. They start with their house in the first square and end with school in the last one. When all pupils have finished, ask them to write down how they travelled to school.
Ask the pupils to compare drawings in their groups. Which part of the journey do they like/ dislike? Ask them to put a traffic light in the corner of each of the squares representing how they feel.
Ask them to count how many ‘Greens’ and ‘Reds’ they have. What is the score? What is the class score? Ask the pupils to complete the following statements and discuss as a class or in groups.
- The BEST part of my journey is…
- The WORST part of my journey is…
- My FAVOURITE PLACE in my local area is… because…
Download:
Today’s classroom quiz: Join in the fun on Kahoot and take on our Road safety quiz.
Extension: + 20 minutes
Your dream journey — Ask pupils to overlap a piece of tracing paper on top of their storyboard.
Ask pupils to make three changes to their journey that would help change it into their ideal journey to school.
Ask, is there another way they could travel? Is there a better route? Could the streets be designed differently?
Inspired by: Big Street Survey.
A curriculum resource which enables pupils to investigate the area around their school and create a manifesto on how to make their streets safer and greener. The Big Street Survey meets numerous curriculum objectives, with various cross-curriculum opportunities and lesson plans.
Email education@sustrans.org.uk to find out more.
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Day 4 activity: Let’s cycle more
Key info:
Objective: Using persuasive writing to increase the number of people cycling, supporting their health and the environment
Resources needed: Persuasive Writing Checklist (1 per pupil)
Activity outline: Pupils choose a subject to write about. For example:
- Cycling is good for the environment
- To encourage as many pupils to cycle to school, for daily journeys, or for leisure with their family
- Cycle storage in school would encourage more pupils to cycle to school
- Hold a ‘Cycling day at school’ to share how important cycling is for our environment and health
- Use the checklist to plan and develop the persuasive writing piece
Today’s classroom quiz: Join in the fun on Kahoot and take on our Cycling and the environment quiz
Extension: 20 to 30 minutes.
To make this learning active, introduce a Walk and Talk activity – walking in 2’s, one pupil reads their piece out, receives feedback, (maybe via ‘Two stars and a wish’ or the equivalent used in your school), before swapping over. This will provide pupils with peer feedback to support the refining and completing of their persuasive writing pieces.
Inspired by: This learning resource is brought to you by our Bike to School Week partner, the Bikeability Trust, from their “Tools for Schools”.
Find out more and access their free toolkit for schools to promote and celebrate cycling.
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Day 5 activity: Playground cycle and scooter skills
Key info:
- 15 minutes per class
- group activity
Objective: An opportunity for pupils to practice their cycling and scooting skills in the playground (i.e. starting, stopping, balancing).
Resources needed:
Activity outline: Set up a course using cones, chalk, poles or other gym equipment.
The course could comprise the following features:
- Slalom – pupils slalom left to right between marked points in a line.
- Funnel – pupils keep between two lines, which steadily get closer together
- Freewheel zone – pupils stop peddling/pushing between two marked points on the course, and try to keep their balance as they slow down
- Stop box – pupils use their brakes to come to a controlled stop within a marked box
Before riding, get pupils to check their bikes are safe to ride and their helmets fit, following the M check and helmet fitting guide.
Split pupils into groups of 5 to tackle to skills course one group at a time. Each group should get 3-4 goes at the course in 15 mins to hone their skills.
Depending on the size of the school playground, you could end the session with a whole class ride around the perimeter.
Today’s classroom quiz: Join in the fun on Kahoot and take on our M Check quiz
Inspired by: Wheely Good Skills playground sessions, run as part of The Big Pedal challenge in 2019 by some of our Schools Officers.
Top Tips:
- Send parents the Junior Bike Dr’s activity and helmet fitting guide a few days before, to ensure pupils turn up with working cycles and helmets that fit!
- How to correctly fit a bike helmet: Two fingers above your eyebrows to the bottom of your helmet / Four fingers to make a V-shape around the bottom of your ears / One finger under the strap beneath your chin.
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