E-Scooters: Reaction Time and Stopping Distance

Without riding a scooter, students measure their reaction time with the ruler drop test, with and without distractions, and work out how many meters an e-scooter at 25 km/h would travel before it even starts braking. Then they mark those distances in the schoolyard to see them at full scale.

How to play

1. Ruler drop test in pairs: one drops a 50-centimeter ruler without warning and the other catches it; record the mark over five tries and convert it to time with the table on the sheet (6 min).
2. Repeat the test while replying to a text on a phone or reading something on the screen (5 min).
3. Calculation: reaction distance equals speed times time; at 25 km/h, about 7 m per second, how many meters do you travel before braking in each case? (5 min).
4. Each pair marks out with cones its reaction distance with and without distraction, plus the approximate braking distance the teacher provides (5 min).
5. Takeaways: why phones and earbuds are banned while riding and why scooters can't use the sidewalk (4 min).

Rules

• Nobody rides a scooter during the lesson: this is an analysis and rules activity.
• Drop the ruler straight down, never throw it.
• Walk, don't run, when measuring and marking distances.
• Phones are used only for the distraction step and then put away.

Variations

Adaptations

• Limited hand function: does the reaction test by tapping a button on the tablet instead of catching the ruler.
• Dyscalculia: uses a ready-made conversion table and a calculator.
• Visual impairment: the test is adapted with a sound cue and a clap as the response.

Learning goals

• Measure personal reaction time and the effect of distractions.
• Calculate reaction distances from speed.
• Understand the reasoning behind scooter rules.

Equipment for a class of 25

• rulers: 15
• cones: 30
• tape measure: 3
• tablets or phones: 15
• worksheets: 30

Teacher tip

Braking distance depends on the surface and the scooter's condition; use a rough figure and explain that it can double in the wet. Check current national and local scooter laws beforehand.

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