Photo Walk: Put the Route in Order

First, the class walks a route around the playground with the teacher, passing six places. Then each team gets shuffled photos of those places, puts them in order from memory and runs the route as a relay, picking up a letter at each spot. If the order is right, the letters spell a word.

How to play

1. Prepare 6 photos of playground places and, at each place, one clothespin per team with a letter card; in order, the letters spell a 6-letter word (for example, SOCCER).
2. Guided walk (4 min): the whole class follows the teacher past the 6 places, without saying anything about letters.
3. Make 5 teams of 5. Each gets the 6 photos shuffled and has 3 minutes to lay them out in a row on the ground in walk order.
4. Relay (8 min): the first runner goes to the place in the first photo, takes the team's letter and comes back; the next goes to the second place, and so on until all 6 are collected.
5. With the letters in photo order, the team reads the word. If it makes no sense, they figure out which photos are switched.
6. Share (3 min): each team explains which place was hardest to remember and why.

Rules

• During the guided walk, walk in a line behind the teacher.
• Each runner takes only their team's letter.
• Run on open paths and walk when arriving at each place.

Variations

Adaptations

• Limited mobility: the route is accessible, and the student can be the coordinator who orders the photos and receives the letters.
• Visual impairment: the walk is done with a partner who describes each place, and the letters are large or raised.
• Autism or shyness: share the secret word privately ahead of time if that helps, and assign a buddy.

Learning goals

• Remember the sequence of places along a route.
• Match photos with real places on the playground.
• Work as a team to check and fix the order.

Equipment for a class of 25

• printed photos: 30
• cards: 30
• clothespins: 30

Teacher tip

Do not mention letters during the walk, so students really pay attention to the route. Use one clothespin color per team so you can spot a wrong letter right away.

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