Geography · 10th Grade

Active learning ideas

New Urbanism and Smart Growth

Active learning works for New Urbanism and Smart Growth because students need to experience the tension between car-dependent design and human-scale environments firsthand. Abstract principles like walkability and mixed-use become concrete when students map them, redesign spaces, or audit real streetscapes.

• Common Core State Standards
• C3: D2.Geo.12.9-12
• C3: D2.Civ.13.9-12

• 45–60 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 3 activities

Activity 01

• Project-Based Learning
• 60 min · Small Groups

Design Workshop: Redesign a Suburban Strip

Students receive an aerial image of a typical suburban commercial strip in their region, showing auto-oriented retail, large surface parking lots, and minimal pedestrian infrastructure. Using New Urbanism principles as a checklist, they redesign the site on a planning grid: adding mixed-use buildings, bike lanes, transit stops, public plazas, and varied housing types. Groups present their redesigns and explain how each change serves a New Urbanist principle.

Explain what 'New Urbanism' is and how it differs from traditional suburban design.

Facilitation Tip

During the Design Workshop, circulate with a checklist of New Urbanist principles to nudge groups toward measurable outcomes like housing density or transit proximity rather than aesthetic preferences.

What to look for

Provide students with a list of five design features (e.g., large front lawns, segregated commercial zones, pedestrian paths, mixed housing types, dedicated bus lanes). Ask them to identify which three are characteristic of New Urbanism and explain why.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills
• Decision-Making

Activity 02

• Project-Based Learning
• 55 min · Pairs

Case Study Comparison: Smart Growth in Practice

Pairs research one US city's smart growth policy (Portland's UGB, Arlington's Rosslyn-Ballston corridor, or Denver's transit TOD) using city planning documents and aerial imagery. They evaluate whether the policy has achieved its stated goals on three metrics: density increase, transit ridership, and housing affordability. Groups report findings and the class discusses which policies show the most promising results and why.

Analyze the principles of smart growth and their application in urban planning.

Facilitation Tip

For the Case Study Comparison, provide students with before-and-after metrics (e.g., vehicle miles traveled, housing permits issued) to ground their analysis in data rather than impressions.

What to look for

Pose the question: 'How might the principles of New Urbanism and smart growth address issues of social equity in urban areas?' Facilitate a class discussion, prompting students to provide specific examples or counterarguments.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills
• Decision-Making

Activity 03

• Project-Based Learning
• 45 min · Pairs

Walkability Audit: Applying the 15-Minute City Test

Students select a neighborhood (their own or an assigned one) and map which daily destinations (grocery store, school, park, pharmacy, transit stop) are within a 15-minute walk of a residential point. They score the neighborhood on walkability, identify gaps, and propose one specific infrastructure change that would most improve the score. Results are compiled into a class walkability map of the local area.

Design a neighborhood plan incorporating New Urbanism principles.

Facilitation Tip

In the Walkability Audit, assign roles so students practice using the 15-minute city rubric consistently, such as one student counting crosswalks while another times pedestrian signals.

What to look for

Show students two aerial images of different neighborhoods. Ask them to identify key differences in design, labeling features related to walkability, density, and mixed-use. Then, ask them to classify each neighborhood as more aligned with traditional suburban design or New Urbanism.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills
• Decision-Making

A few notes on teaching this unit

Teach New Urbanism by starting with students’ lived experiences of their own neighborhoods. Avoid overwhelming them with theory upfront; instead, let them discover how current design choices limit or enable daily routines. Research shows students grasp equity impacts better when they analyze real zoning maps and housing price data alongside New Urbanist case studies.

Successful learning shows when students can articulate how design choices shape behavior and equity, not just recite definitions. They should move from identifying features to arguing for specific design changes that align with New Urbanist goals.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During the Design Workshop, watch for students who equate New Urbanism with historical architectural styles like Victorian facades or brick sidewalks.

  Use the Charter of the New Urbanism as a reference during the workshop and ask groups to justify each design choice with walkability or mixed-use metrics, not aesthetics. For example, prompt them to explain how a front porch increases sidewalk use rather than calling it a 'cute' feature.

• During the Case Study Comparison, watch for oversimplified claims that smart growth policies always raise housing costs.

  Provide students with housing price and permit data for the case study cities, then ask them to calculate affordability ratios (e.g., median home price divided by median income) before and after smart growth policies were implemented. This grounds the discussion in evidence.

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Methods used in this brief

• Project-Based Learning