STARS Road Safety Obstacle Course

About this activity

Suitable for secondary schools.

Do you want a practical way to show your pupils the effect of being distracted on the roads?

Run a road safety obstacle course in your school to demonstrate how being distracted can affect your ability to complete straightforward tasks.

Use the STARS Road Safety Obstacle Course package to help your pupils understand the dangers of using mobile technology on the roads. Complete with teacher plan, score sheets and a presentation you will have all you need to complete the course (see resources).

How it works

Pupils complete an obstacle course in two teams; once with no distractions and once whilst writing a text message. Penalties are incurred for obstacles being missed, touched or knocked over and in the second race, for mistakes in the text message. The greater the number of penalties, the more severe the consequences.

With your pupils compare the sets of data to illustrate how a straightforward task can be made much harder when distracted by mobile technology. You can then relate this to real-life situations, reinforcing the message of how being distracted by technology, friends or surroundings can pose an increased risk of danger from traffic.

What you’ll need

• A large open space such as the school hall or gym
• Large obstacles (bollards, rounder’s posts, hoops, benches, cones)
• Two stopwatches
• Two mobile phones
• Sponge balls and a bucket
• Score sheet

How to evidence your activity

• Involve your borough officer: Share your ideas, agree your targets and discuss any challenges you face
• Record the feedback from your pupils
• Add your story to the STARS website. Explain the activity, add photos and include pupils’ feedback and any risk assessments

This activity supports the Vision Zero target to eliminate death and serious injuries on London’s streets.