Can you share a quick overview of the map course?

This course, designed by two experienced educators, provides a step-by-step guide to creating a child-friendly city map. The content is comprehensive and easy to understand, using clear language and engaging, hands-on activities. Upon completing the six stages of the course, you will have a final draft of your own map ready to print and distribute to local and visiting families and youth. Because of the significant amount of community engagement involved, we estimate that creating a child friendly city map will take between 3 months to one year to complete.

Who is the course designed for?

The Child Friendly City Map Course by Growing Up Boulder is designed for anyone interested in leading a child-friendly city map-making project for their town or city. This course attracts a diverse audience, including teachers, academics, nonprofit leaders who work with youth, and city planners, among others. It is particularly appealing to those aiming to create a more child and family-friendly, equitable urban environment.

How much does the course cost?

Pricing depends upon whether you prefer to take the course independently or if you prefer to add in consultation sessions from the Growing Up Boulder team.  Please contact us for details about the cost of the course. 

How would you describe how the content is organized?

This course combines educational content with practical application, using interactive learning to build skills for leading youth groups. Participants will learn about activities and then experience them firsthand, building confidence to lead these activities effectively. The course is organized with videos, interactive exercises, and material creation, guided by a 'Course Key' indicating when you'll be Experiencing👣, Researching📖, Deepening Understanding🦉and Creating🖐. 

What digital platform does the course use?

Canvas is a very user-friendly digital platform that is used by educators everywhere. The authors of this course have developed this course with participants in mind who have a range of experiences with online courses. When we say that we walk users through the course “step-by-step”, we mean it.

Is there a textbook for the course?

Yes, the textbook for this course, Placemaking with Children and Youth, offers comprehensive guidance in how to engage children and youth in the planning and design of local environments. From a history of children's rights to case studies discussing international initiatives to create child-friendly cities, it explains the importance of children's active participation in their societies and presents ways to bring all generations together to plan cities with a high quality of life. Co-written by two Growing Up Boulder co-founders and a former co-director, we have utilized this book throughout the stages of this map making course to provide deeper examples of what participatory planning with youth looks like in practice, and to help you learn from our experiences. U.S. Participants: For a discounted copy of Placemaking with Children and Youth, go to this page and ask Growing Up Boulder for the discount code. Out of U.S. Participants: For an ebook, we recommend using this google books link which provides multiple options for purchase.

How long does it take to work through the stages of the course?

There's no fixed timeline for the course. It's flexible and depends on how much time you can dedicate. Growing Up Boulder's map-making process took about a year because we chose to do extensive map revisions that involved going back to students again and again to see if there was further feedback before a final draft. However, we estimate a small team working at a reasonable pace each week can finish in several months. The timeline is adaptable to your team's speed and availability.

What are the approach options for taking the course?

Two approaches that we see–you can take the course by first reading the whole thing in a short time period and then start working on creating the map…OR, you can read the course and do the map activities as you go. It’s totally up to you. The town of Salida, Colorado decided to read the course and do the activities as they went along. That worked very well for them.