Schools in Walking Distance
This pattern is shaped by
Problem
When schools are consolidated into large campuses on cheap land at the edge of town, every child must be driven or bused, the school has no relationship to the neighborhood it serves, and the daily journey that should build independence and fitness instead builds car dependency from age five.
Evidence and Discussion
Small, neighborhood-scale schools (200–400 students for elementary) embedded within walking distance of the homes they serve produce better outcomes on nearly every measure: academic achievement, attendance, community engagement, and physical activity. The walk to school — when it's safe and pleasant — is itself educational: the child learns their neighborhood, develops spatial awareness, and builds social connections along the route.
Therefore
locate every elementary school within a fifteen-minute walk of the homes it serves — no child should need a car or bus for the daily journey. Keep schools small enough (200–400 students) that every child is known by name. Connect the school to the neighborhood with safe walking routes (SAFE STREETS FOR CHILDREN, 72). Make the school grounds available to the community outside school hours — the playground, the gym, the library become neighborhood resources.