I can do it! Challenge
On the day that promotes active transportation, all of the school’s students are invited to walk, bike or scoot to school.
This is a unique opportunity for students, parents, and school staff to get together to discuss sustainable mobility issues and build a culture of active transportation within the school.
Challenge day details
Before the day of the challenge, each student will have received an invitation to participate in the event and parents will have received a short online survey inviting them to get involved. On the day of the challenge, a committee of volunteers will be waiting for the students to arrive at the school.
Children who travelled to school using active transportation will receive a campaign badge, as a token of recognition and reward for their efforts. The badge is also intended to develop students’ sense of belonging to the school and to the activities taking place.
The children will also have the opportunity to have their photo taken. The photos will be displayed on the school’s notice board, according to the school’s guidelines.
For the 2022 edition, students who used active transportation to go to school on the day of the challenge will be entered in a DRAW to win prizes. The winners will be contacted by the school to receive their prize(s). Local sponsors will provide the prizes.
Every school is free to organize its own special activities.
Several activities can be organized to complement the I can do it! challenge, including:
Special walking buses: In some schools, the I can do it! challenge is used as an opportunity to organize special walking bus routes. These give parents a chance to try out this concept, in which students are accompanied by parent volunteers to walk from home to school.
Awareness-raising with an education relations officer: During the I can do it! challenge, the presence of an education relations officer raises parents’ awareness of safety issues around schools. The officer is there to engage in dialogue as well as answer questions from parents, and, often, to reassure them.
What about students who do not live within walking distance of the school?
All students can participate in the challenge!
How? Children only need to travel part of the way to school by active transportation. For example, they can be dropped off by car three blocks away from the school, in the safety corridor, so that they can finish their trip to school on foot.