Skip over navigation
Twizzle, a female giraffe, needs transporting to another zoo as the zoo where she lives has been flooded.
It is important to plan Twizzle's journey very carefully. She must be healthy and calm when she arrives at her new home.
The lorry will need to travel quite slowly, so a short route must be chosen.
The lorry will be very tall to carry Twizzle, so the route must avoid low bridges.
Bendy roads must be avoided in case Twizzle topples over.
Every three hours, the lorry must stop at the side of the road for 30 minutes so that Twizzle can be checked and given some food and water.
Here is a sketch map of three possible routes:
Each black space on the routes represents 30 minutes of travelling time.
Which route will give the fastest journey?
How long does the journey take?
Twizzle's Journey
Age 5 to 7
Challenge Level 
Twizzle's Journey
Twizzle, a female giraffe, needs transporting to another zoo as the zoo where she lives has been flooded.
It is important to plan Twizzle's journey very carefully. She must be healthy and calm when she arrives at her new home.
The lorry will need to travel quite slowly, so a short route must be chosen.
The lorry will be very tall to carry Twizzle, so the route must avoid low bridges.
Bendy roads must be avoided in case Twizzle topples over.
Every three hours, the lorry must stop at the side of the road for 30 minutes so that Twizzle can be checked and given some food and water.
Here is a sketch map of three possible routes:
Which route will give the fastest journey?
How long does the journey take?
This problem is taken from "Be a Zoo Vet", one of the Using Maths series published by ticktock Media Ltd. To view their online catalogue, visit the ticktock Media website .
Why do this problem?
This problem will help pupils become more confident in calculating with units of time. It is also a practical example of optimisation.
Possible approach
The problem could be introduced by projecting the map onto a screen and children could be given copies of the routes.
Key questions
How long is each route?
Which route is most bendy?
How are you going to decide on the best route?
How many stops would be needed for each journey?
Possible extension
The problem Delia's Routes might be a good extension. It challenges learners to work in a systematic way to find possible routes.Possible support
Having a copy with the routes will help children get started. Encourage them to work with a partner.You may also like
Buzzy Bee
Buzzy Bee was building a honeycomb. She decorated the honeycomb with a pattern using numbers. Can you discover Buzzy's pattern and fill in the empty cells for her?
Fair Exchange
In your bank, you have three types of coins. The number of spots shows how much they are worth. Can you choose coins to exchange with the groups given to make the same total?
Missing Middles
Can you work out the domino pieces which would go in the middle in each case to complete the pattern of these eight sets of three dominoes?