Ways We Travel

Curriculum Information

Curriculum Area: Social Environmental and Scientific Education (SESE) – History, Geography, and Science
Specific Strand: Geography – Human Environments
Strand Unit: People living and working in the local area; Transport and communication
Class Level: Years 1–2 (Junior and Senior Infants)
Time: 35 minutes
Number of Students: 18
Location Context: Ireland-based, urban or rural classroom

---

Learning Objectives

By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

1. Identify different modes of transport commonly used in Ireland.
2. Recognise why different modes of transport are used for certain terrains or destinations.
3. Understand basic spatial awareness in relation to Ireland's geography (cities, countryside, islands).
4. Develop simple reasoning and classification skills through group discussion and sorting games.
5. Communicate ideas and listening respectfully during peer-led discussions.

---

Resources Required

• Large blank laminated map of Ireland (with key cities, countryside, airport, coastline marked loosely)
• Transport image cards: planes, boats, trains, buses, cars
• Destination photo cards: island, cityscape, countryside, airport
• Blu-Tack or Velcro dots for sticking pictures on the map
• Basket with sorting labels: "Land", "Water", "Air"
• A4 Printable activity sheets (boats, planes, trains, cars)
• Whiteboard and marker
• Optional: real toy models of each transport type (to assist kinaesthetic learners)

---

Lesson Breakdown

1. Warm-Up Discussion (5 minutes)

Display on board: Pictures of a boat, train, car, and plane.

Teacher prompts:

• “Who’s been on one of these before?”
• “Where were you going?”
• “Was it fun or scary?”

Teaching points:

• Use students’ answers to introduce that different types of transport are used depending on the destination and distance.
• Introduce key vocabulary: transport, travel, destination, journey

Try to relate examples to familiar Irish areas: “What if we wanted to visit the Aran Islands? Could we drive there?”

---

2. Introducing Transport for Different Places (7 minutes)

Use destination photos: island, city, countryside, and airport.

Hold each up and ask:

• “What kind of place is this?”
• “Which transport would help us get here?”

Explain simply:

• Planes are good for faraway places across the sea.
• Boats help us reach islands like the Aran Islands.
• Trains connect towns and big cities (Dublin to Cork).
• Cars and buses are good for short and everyday journeys.

Use real-life Irish place names to root the examples in students’ local knowledge.

Stretch question for fast finishers or gifted learners: “What happens if cars are stuck in traffic? Is there a quicker way?”

---

3. Main Activity: Mapping Transport on Ireland (12 minutes)

Set-up: Give each student a small card with a mode of transport on it.

Teacher model: Show the large Ireland map. Say: "This is where Dublin is. We use trains here—but what about over here on the coast?"

Let students come up one by one and place their transport image where they think it fits. For example:

• Planes near Shannon or Dublin Airport
• Boats along coastal regions
• Trains connecting large cities
• Cars and buses placed broadly on major land routes

Discussion:

• “Why did we put the ferry beside the water?”
• “Why are there roads in so many places?”
• “Would it help to have a train into the country areas?”

Bring class together and reflect with a few guiding questions.

Modifications: Pair children who may need extra support in identifying locations.

---

4. Game: How Would You Get There? (6 minutes)

Set-up: Prepare simple travel challenges.

Examples:

• “We are in Cork. How do we go to Dublin?”
• “We want to visit Inis Mór – it’s an island!”
• “We are flying from Ireland to Spain.”

Pass around a basket with mini transport cards. Students each pick one and stand to explain their choice.

Encourage full sentences: “I would take a train because…” “I would take a boat because…”

Assessment opportunity: Listen for appropriate choices and reasoning.

---

5. Optional Finisher: Sorting Game (If Time, ~5 minutes)

Hold up transport picture cards. Ask: “Where does this go? On the land, in the water, or in the air?”

Students can come up and stick each item on suitably labeled sections on the whiteboard:

• “Land” (car, bus, train)
• “Water” (boat)
• “Air” (plane)

Quick Reflection: “What did we learn about how we travel?”

---

Differentiation

• Visual Learners: Use colourful, high-quality image cards and map visuals.
• Auditory Learners: Plenty of discussion and Q&A.
• Kinesthetic Learners: Handling object cards, sticking to the board/map.
• Extra Support: Pair with peers, use repeated keywords.
• Challenge Learners: Ask why some transport doesn't work for certain trips (“Can a car go to an island?”)

---

Assessment for Learning (AfL)

• Informal observations during discussions.
• Listening for transport choices during games (reasoning and vocabulary).
• Participation in map activity: accuracy of placing and rationale provided.
• Questions such as:
  • "Why do we need a boat for an island?"
  • "What would happen if the train didn't go to the city?"

---

Integration Opportunities

Language and Literacy:

• Oral language development — full sentence explanations during activities.

Art & Visual Education:

• Drawing or creating transport scenes as a follow-up activity in the next lesson.

Maths:

• Use positional language (next to, above, near, far) when placing items on the map.

---

Take-Home Extension Task

Ask children to talk with parents at home:

"What type of transport do we use the most? Why?"

They could draw a picture or take a photo of them in their favourite method of transport to share next day in a show-and-tell session.

---

Reflective Questions for the Teacher

• Did students demonstrate understanding of where different transport is used?
• Were they able to make connections using real Irish contexts?
• Which children needed more prompting or visual supports?
• Could this lesson be a springboard for a class mini-project on “Transport Around Our Country”?

---

Wow Factor Suggestion ✨

Drama Integration (Optional for Follow-Up):

Next week, turn your classroom into a "Transport Station"!

• Create zones for an airport, train station, ferry docks.
• Roleplay buying tickets, boarding, and travelling.
• Use basic Gaeilge in the roleplay (e.g., “Tá mé ag dul go Corcaigh”).

Let imagination bring geography to life!

---

This detailed lesson helps build young students’ understanding of travel, geography, and decision-making in a way that’s instantly relatable to their lives in Ireland—anchored tightly to the Irish SESE curriculum and learning through play and discussion.