Departure Board Detective
About 30 minutes, indoors, for ages 8 to 10.
Where it works
Works in any indoor space
Who it's for
ages 8 to 10
Try this adventure now:
- The city furthest from here
- The flight leaving soonest
- A city name you cannot pronounce
- A delayed flight
- Two flights going to the same place
- The gate with the highest number
- A country you have never heard of
Today's Challenge
- 1.Which city on the board is furthest away?
- 2.How many countries could you reach from this gate today?
- 3.Which flight would you get on if you could pick any of them?
Quick Start: What you need
- 1pencil
The Goal
Read the big board at the gate and find out where everyone else is going.
How to start
- 1
Gather what you need: pencil. Nothing else required.
- 2
Head indoors and see how many you can find: The city furthest from here, The flight leaving soonest, A city name you cannot pronounce, A delayed flight.
- 3
Talk about what you are seeing. Start with "Which city on the board is furthest away?"
- 4
Print the worksheet to check things off as you find them, and keep it afterwards.
Pick A Flight
Choose one city off the board you would fly to instead, and write down what you would do on your first day there.
Departure boards used to flip through printed letters, which is why some airports still call them flip boards even though the letters are now on screens.
If you want to push it further
- Find a city on the board that nobody in the family can point to on a map
- Spot a flight leaving for a place where it is already tomorrow
Print it and go
The worksheet has the checklist, the prompts, and a space to draw in. One page, ready for a bag or a glovebox.