Public signs are an efficient way to communicate distances that matter. If you are on a bush walk, there is a big difference between a 2 km walk and a 20 km walk. Or between something that takes 10 minutes and something that takes 1 hour. You can use this community distance sign from Hawks Nest NSW to get you started on a whole discussion about measuring distances at your school.
Your students can make their own school distance sign. First talk about all the important areas in your school e.g. The Principal’s Office, the canteen, the toilet block, the front gate, the sports field, the after school care room. Where should you begin your measuring? e.g. from the front entrance gate? The office? How will you check the time taken to go from the start to the finish? (e.g. walk at a normal pace with a stopwatch?) Divide the class into smaller groups and ask each group to select one area. What equipment will they need? (e.g. trundle wheels, tape measures, stopwatches or clocks) How will they check their accuracy? (e.g. measure to and from their area then back again). Once you have all the measurements ask the groups to swap information and check another group’s distances and times. Once everyone is convinced that the distances and times are accurate then discuss what sort of signage to create.
Some students may even like to follow this up at home by making a distance and time information sign about areas around or near where they live.