School runs and classrooms
Children breathe more air for their size and spend hours at school. What parents can do, and what to ask the school.
Children breathe faster than adults and take in more air for their body weight. Their lungs are still developing. School hours and the journey to school are a large share of their daily exposure.
The journey
- Choose a quieter route where possible, even if it is a little longer. Air beside main roads is much dirtier.
- Car or school bus: windows up, air on recirculate, and don’t wait with the engine idling at the gate.
- On foot or cycle: walk on the side of the pavement away from traffic, keep the pace gentle, and avoid waiting at busy junctions.
- Masks for children: only if the mask fits a child’s face and seals, and the child can remove it themselves. Never on children under 2. See the mask chooser.
What to ask the school
- Outdoor activities: Does the school move sport, assemblies and recess indoors when the AQI is Poor or worse? GRAP orders sometimes restrict outdoor activities or move classes online. See GRAP explained.
- Classroom air: Are there purifiers sized for each classroom (a typical classroom needs a large unit, or two), and are they switched on, with doors and windows closed during bad hours?
- Ventilation: Classrooms full of children build up carbon dioxide quickly. Ask whether rooms are aired at cleaner times of day.
- Children with asthma: Does the school know who they are, and can they keep their reliever inhaler with them?
Parent groups that ask together tend to get answers faster.
At home
- Make the child’s bedroom the clean room, or their play space if that is where they spend the day.
- On Very Poor or Severe days, plan indoor play: active games, dancing, obstacle courses.
- Watch for coughing at night, wheezing, or more frequent use of an inhaler, and talk to the paediatrician if you notice them. See children and babies.