When a big, red, double-decker bus came to their nursery, the children wondered whether it would behave or create chaos like the ‘Naughty Bus’ in the book by Jan and Jerry Oke. Children questioned whether the bus would drive off before they could explore inside, or would it stay where it was supposed to be parked?
Staff at Featherstone Primary School in Southall, west London, arranged with transport provider Abellio for the bus to visit to coincide with the nursery’s investigations around the great outdoors and transport.
‘The school is in an area of high deprivation and, although some of the children use buses more than they use cars, the bus journeys are very limited and parents rely more on walking,’ explains assistant head Natatja Bauer.
Learning intentions included supporting children’s communication and language skills, with many children having English as an additional language. By introducing exciting, real-life experiences, staff find that it gives plenty of opportunity to model language, introduce new vocabulary and motivates children to talk about what they are doing, including recalling it later.
ROLE PLAY
Children enjoyed sharing the Naughty Bus book, looking at the photographs of what the bus got up to and talking about the mess it created, especially when it drove through the baked beans. In preparation for the bus visit, each carpet group found a wrapped-up gift and opened it to reveal their own toy bus like in the book. They agreed that they needed to take care of it and ensure that it did not get up to any mischief.
‘The children took great pleasure in looking after the little buses,’ says Natatja. ‘Children commented that they must make sure that he did not go into the water and that they had to keep him out of it. They commented that if he does get into a mess, they’d have to clean him. And they were holding the bus really gently and making sure that it didn’t drive away. One child said make sure we’re watching him, keep an eye on the bus!’
By linking the Naughty Bus story to the upcoming visit, children were encouraged to explore their imaginations and think about what the real bus would do when it arrived. Would it be a good bus or a naughty bus? Some children wondered whether the bus would drive off with them inside.
Children role-played buses and made them out of large boxes and lined-up chairs. They made bus tickets and took turns to be the bus driver, dressing up in a hat and jacket before driving the bus.
‘We noticed that when the children were role-playing being on a bus, they were re-enacting their own experiences of being on bus journeys,’ says Natatja. ‘They pointed out of the imaginary windows and commented on the different things that they pretended they could see, such as the large local Tesco.’
ALL ABOARD
When the real bus arrived, the first thing the children noticed was the sheer size of it. They stood and looked up at the bus and commented on the huge wheels and how they were around the same size as themselves.
‘Buses can be quite intimidating when they are moving along the streets,’ says Natatja. ‘The children were able to climb on the bus and explore without having the worry that it was going to jolt around. They enjoyed going up and down the stairs, counting how many there were and looking out the windows. Some of them sat on the top deck at the front and pretended to be the driver themselves before going down and being allowed to sit in the driver’s seat. They were surprised at the big size of the steering wheel.
‘For some children their previous experience of being on a bus was to be restrained in a buggy, so it was good they had the opportunity to walk around the bus and explore.
‘The teachers were able to explain the emergency windows and the different signs, such as those saying how many people are allowed to go up to the top deck and how many are allowed to sit downstairs. The children could then associate the signs and environmental print with meaning.’
Children loved pressing the bell, ‘ding ding’ like in the Naughty Bus book, and honking the bus horn. Natatja believes it was empowering for them to be able to pretend to be the driver of such a big vehicle and to control the passenger doors.
It was not only the bus that fascinated the children. ‘Even meeting and talking to the bus driver was exciting – being able to speak to someone that drives the bus and has that knowledge and power,’ says Natatja. ‘Some of the children were interested to find out about him – what his name was, where he drove the bus from and how he got there. They also wanted to know where he was going to next and what he had done with the other passengers – had he dropped them off?’
A LEARNING JOURNEY
After the bus visit, the children continued with their role play and staff extended their transport explorations. They discussed bus and train timetables and downloaded maps of local bus routes and the London Underground map for them to investigate and follow on Google Maps.
Staff introduced technology skills by encouraging the children to use the computer mouse to follow bus routes on the computer, and play maths games with passengers boarding and getting off buses.
The nursery’s Bee-bot floor robots were transformed into buses, and the children used directional language and coding skills to program them to follow a route.
‘The bus visit was an experience that many of the children will remember forever, especially those with a particular interest in transport or mechanical engineering,’ says Natatja. ‘Being able to explore the bus will be something they will continue to talk about and an experience they will build upon. It was really good for their language skills and a real-life experience that links what happens in nursery with the outside world.’
BOOK CORNER
Naughty Bus by Jan and Jerry Oke
Where else could you see a red London bus crashing through a plate of baked beans?
Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Peña and Christian Robinson
Nana helps CJ to see the beauty and fun of their routine bus journey through the urban landscape.
The Hundred Decker Bus by Mike Smith
What if one day the bus driver turned down a new road and picked up new and exciting people? A fun-packed story about a very unusual bus – with lots of funny details and a big fold-out ending.
You Can’t Take an Elephant on the Bus by Patricia Cleveland-Peck and David Tazzyman
‘You can’t take an elephant on the bus…It would simply cause a terrible fuss!’ Also, never put a camel in a sailing boat, or a tiger on a train…
The Lion on the Bus by Gareth P Jones and Jeff Harter
Sing, roar and growl along with the animals in this lively twist on the classic Wheels on the Bus which has a message of friendship and acceptance.
We Catch the Bus by Katie Abey
Choose your favourite vehicle and join all the busy animals as they zoom around.
The Whales on the Bus by Katrina Charman and Nick Sharratt
Join in a fun adventure with a host of colourful animals as they ride, soar, whizz and zoom on a range of exciting vehicles – from tigers on gliders to ducks on trucks.
