Airport Departure Time

Topic: Time

Mode: Interpersonal

Level: Novice

Students will read schedules and decide on the best combined departure time for two people.

Components of this activity: A scenario and two tables of schedules.

Instructions to the teacher: 

  • Give students the scenario below. 
  • Show students Mary’s and Dave’s schedules. (See Table 1 below)
  • Then provide students with the schedules of Michigan Flyer. (See the table below)
  • Pair students up.
  • Ask students to discuss with their partners and find the best departure time that works both for Mary and Dave.
  • Ask students to explain their reasoning.

Scenario

Mary and Dave will attend the same conference. They booked the same flight from Detroit to Washington DC. The departure time of the flight is 5:25 pm on May 25. However, they live in East Lansing so they have to take the Michigan Flyer, which will take 2 hours, to get to Detroit.  


Mary and Dave have different schedules on May 25. They need to find the best departure time from East Lansing considering their different schedules. Can you help them?

Table 1: Mary’s and Dave’s schedules on May 25

Mary’s ScheduleDave’s Schedule
Psychology class from 10:00 am-12:00 pmMeeting: 9:00 am-9:45 am
Chinese Class: 10:30-11:30 pm

Table 2: Schedules of Michigan Flyer

Location: East Lansing
5:15 am
6:30 am
7:45 am
9:15 am
10:00 am
11:30 am
12:30 pm
2:00 pm
3:15 pm
4:30 pm
5:30 pm

Instructions to students

Read the scenario and based on bus and students’ schedules, find the best departure time for Mary and Dave.