Learning Resources

App Shows What 6 Feet Away Looks Like

• By Dian Schaffhauser
• 04/07/20

Two education organizations have created a free Apple iOS app to help demonstrate how far to stay away from other people to practice safe physical distancing. The program, "Social Distancing Trainer," was produced by Discovery Education and Afterschool Alliance. The app uses augmented reality to get the idea across.

Once the app is installed, the user finds a clear space and waits for the signal to press the screen. The student chooses imperial measurement or metric, and then a holographic image of a human figure appears, along with the distance between the figure and the student. The distance changes as the student moves closer or farther from the augmented figure, to give the learner a sense of how far away he or she should be for safe contact.

The trainer also provides information about the COVID-19 health crisis, using resources from the World Health Organization, the Centers for Disease Control and the United Kingdom's National Health Service.

"Getting a true sense of safe social distancing can be challenging," said Afterschool Alliance Executive Director Jodi Grant, in a statement. The app, she said, provides users with "an effective and cool way to see what social distancing looks like, all from the safety of their homes."

The app is currently available in the Apple App Store; a Google Android version will also be made available shortly via Google Play.