Roadbook Walking Rally with Tulip Diagrams
Pairs follow a rally-style roadbook with a drawing of each intersection (tulip diagrams) and distances in steps, writing down the letters on the cones they find around the school. Students practice reading symbols, estimating distance and navigating.
How to play
- Prepare a 10-leg roadbook sheet for the school grounds: each line has a distance in steps, a tulip diagram (intersection with an arrow) and a box to write in.
- Place 8 lettered cones along the correct route and 4 decoy cones with other letters on wrong turns.
- Take 4 minutes to explain the tulip: the dot is where you are and the arrow is the way you go. Walk the first leg together.
- Pairs start a minute apart with sheet A or sheet B (same route in reverse), count their steps and write down each cone's letter.
- Allow 16 minutes. At the finish, the teacher checks the letters: a decoy letter shows which leg went wrong.
- Wrap up for 5 minutes by looking at the leg with the most mistakes.
Rules
- Count steps while walking; you may jog between legs.
- No passing other pairs in narrow walkways.
- Stay inside the marked grounds and don't go into buildings.
- Do not move the cones.
Variations
Easier
Use a 6-leg sheet with simple arrows and distances in meters marked by cones.
Standard
Ten legs with tulip diagrams, step distances and decoy cones.
Harder
At the end, each pair designs a new leg with its own tulip for another pair to try.
Adaptations
- Limited mobility: count in meters or wheelchair pushes after measuring how far one push goes in 10 meters.
- Hearing impairment or autism: show a large sample tulip and practice one leg before starting.
- Fitness level: fitter pairs jog between legs and repeat the route in the other direction.
Learning goals
- Interpret simple diagrams of intersections and directions.
- Estimate distance by counting steps.
- Spot and correct route-choice mistakes.
Equipment for a class of 25
- roadbook sheets: 13
- pencils: 13
- cones: 12
- letter signs: 12
Teacher tip
Before starting, have each student count how many steps they take in 10 meters; otherwise the distances won't add up. This works great on campuses with several paths and buildings.
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