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Geocaching in the Classroom
Melissa Whitman ~ Shawn-Kimberly Kocher~ Brian SchollNazareth Area School District
What is Geocaching?Geocache
A container hidden that includes, at minimum, a logbook for geocachers to sign.
Geocaching
Geocaching is a worldwide game of hiding and seeking treasure. A geocacher can place a geocache in the world, pinpoint its location using GPS technology and then share the geocache’s existence and location online. Anyone with a GPS unit can then try to locate the geocache.
Cache
A shortened version of the word geocache.
Website- geocaching.com or app geocaching
Objectives
Develop an understanding of the basics of Geocaching.
Examine how to incorporate Geocaching into the classroom.
Geocaching 101
http://www.polleverywhere.com/multiple_choice_polls/LTE2NzA4MjE3OTQ
Types of GeocachesTraditional
A cache or hidden treasure that is located.
Multi-Cache
A cache that is located and gives coordinates to the next cache
Letter or Puzzle Cache
A cache that has clues to a larger puzzle or mystery, event or story
What does a Geocache look like?
What types of GPS to use?
Portable GPS
Smartphone App
Car GPS
Geocaching Lingo DNF
Did Not Find. An acronym used by geocachers to state that they did not find a cache. This is also a type of online log on Geocaching.com and is useful for alerting cache owners of potential issues. Cache owners who repeatedly receive "Did Not Find" logs should check to see that there cache has not been removed.
D/T
Geocaches are rated in two categories, each designated on a 5-point scale. Difficulty relates to the mental challenge of finding a cache and terrain describes the physical environment. A 1/1 difficulty/terrain rating would the easiest cache to find, while a 5/5 difficulty/terrain rating would be the most difficult.
Geocaching Lingo
Ground Zero (GZ)
The point where your GPS device shows that you have reached the cache location. At Ground Zero, you are zero feet (or zero meters) away from your destination.
Muggle
A non-geocacher. Based on "Muggle" from the Harry Potter series, which is a non-magical person. Usually this term is used after a non geocacher looks puzzled after befriending a geocacher searching for a cache, or when a non-geocacher accidentally finds a cache.
Geocache Alphabet Soup
BYOP
FTF
TFTC
TFTH
TNLN
TNLNSL/TNSL
TOTT
Geocaching Tips
Log onto geocaching.com before you go out.
Have an idea as to where you are going.
Know what Poison Ivy, Oak, and Sumac look like.
Beware of ticks!
Bring water.
Bring tools, pens, if necessary.
Leave the cache as you found it.
Log your find!
Geocaching in School
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZyNQjHpmBwk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jVS_vDLHec
Why Geocaching in School?
Active student engagement is one factor directly correlated with student achievement.
Geocaching and HistoricalProject
Moravian History
Geocaching and HistoricalEvents
6th Grade Gifted Students- created geocache activity for 3rd grade walking tour of historic Nazareth
Met with local historians to gather and research information
Met with businesses to ask permission to place a geocache! ( IMPORTANT)
Professional Development
Welcome to the Statue at ZinZendorf Hall. Zinzendorf Manor was the first building in the section that came to be central Nazareth, erected in 1755-56 on land that was a forest before construction. Count Zinzendorf wax exiled from Saxony, but it was revoked and he had to return and never came back to Nazareth to see his manor.The Story of the Rose…William Penn bequeathed this land to his daughter, Letitia, who under colonial law would have had to pay a single red rose each June 24, if so demanded by the trustees. People in Nazareth celebrate this every year on June 11 and 12 by various organizations selling single red roses throughout the town.
Please take a ROSE sticker for your hunt.
Your next coordinate is: N 44.533'; W 18.741'Hint, near the Nazareth circle.
Sample of Geocache Clue
*the team effort required; need to use limited time efficiently with good quick group decisions
*comprehensive list of destinations to reach and many other groups out there doing the same thing instilled a healthy competitive element
*the outdoor and physical component to the "exercise" made it especially enjoyable and exceptional for the students
*incorporating the discovery of historical parts of our town provided students with another educational element
*direct application of what they studied in the classroom: latitudes and longitudes/utilization of GPS technology/QR codes
*constructing and placing the QR codes for the NASD younger students gave them a connection to those students and their upcoming field trip
Why spend the time?
“We each learned something new, as well as the third graders, about the town we lived in and gave them a better idea about our history.”- Katrina 6th Grade Student
Student Quotes
“I loved researching places from where I live and
creating something fun for the third graders to see. It
is a great way to have a fun and educational
scavenger hunt.” – Emily 6th Grade Student
“It made us excited to know what we were doing helped other kids learn in a slightly non-traditional way.”Dylan 6th Grade Student
“My daughter enjoyed it so much that she introduced the Geocaching technology to our family and we have done several of them with my other 2 children.”- Mrs. Joseph
Parent Quotes
“Thank you so much for providing my son with
such a challenging, fun and beneficial
experience that taught him so much in such an
entertaining way. These kinds of experiences
make him look forward to coming to school and
develop an interest in lifelong learning.”- Mrs.
Allen
Lesson Components
Language Arts:Fill caches with definitions of vocab and have students match the terms
Fill caches with story lines from literature and have students put the story lines in chronological order or match to appropriate works
Fill caches with various terms, ideas, character names and have students write a story using the items in the caches
Lesson ComponentsScience:
Fill caches with pictures of endangered species of animals and decide which they would either keep on the list or take off the list and defend their answers.Fill caches with pictures of chemical process (ice melting, chain rusting) and have students identify the process in the picture.
Lesson Components
Social Studies:Fill caches with various events in history and put the events in chronological order and explain
Fill caches with pictures of supplies for a trip (exploration) and decide which supplies to keep based on the journey (ie. rope, extra canvas, fresh water, food, fishing gear)
Fill caches with events that lead up to a mysterious ending (ie. who shot JFK) and have the kids solve the mystery
Lesson Components
Math:Fill caches with problems that students have to solve - the answer could be the next waypoint number they have to findFill caches with steps of a multi-step problem and have students put the steps in the correct orderFill caches with steps from a geometry proof and have the students arrange the correct order
Lesson Components
World Language:Fill caches with clues to a story written in Spanish or German and have the students tell the story (can be done English to Spanish/German as well)
Fill caches with pictures of locations from various countries and students have to figure out what country their clues are from
Fill caches with various Spanish or German words (a mix of nouns, verbs, adjective) and the students have to write a story using those words.
Lesson Components
FCS/Nutrition:Fill caches with pictures of various food items and have the students locate them correctly on the food pyramid
Fill caches with steps to baking a recipe and have students put the steps in the correct order according to their knowledge of measuring, mixing dry then wet, baking, cooling, etc.
Fill caches with items from a food label and have the students discuss whether or not the item is nutritious based on what they found or not.
Lesson Components
Art/Music:Fill caches with stanzas of music and have kids arrange the stanzas in the proper orderFill caches with pictures of various works of art and have students match them with pictures of artists
Lesson ComponentsGeneral Ideas:
Geo-Bingo: give bingo cards to the kids with the questions in the spaces - they have to find the caches with the answers that they need to form bingo
Fill caches with words. Give kids the word search and put the words in the caches - when they find the caches they will know what words to look for in the search
Fill caches with pictures or terms and have the kids determine what they all have in common OR which one doesn‘t belong (people who were assassinated, certain elements on the periodic table, species of animals)
Questions?
Thank you!
Resources• http://www.geocaching.com/
• http://www.geocaching.com/education/default.aspx
• http://blog.geocaching.com/2010/08/geocaching-class-geocaching-coms-lost-found-video/
• http://tcoffey.edublogs.org/category/geocaching/
• http://educaching.com/
• http://www.wikihow.com/Go-Geocaching
• http://www.factsfacts.com/geocacher.htm
• http://gigaom.com/apple/eleven-geocaching-iphone-apps-worth-finding/
• http://geocache.itrtblog.com/
• http://geocacher-u.com/?page_id=88
• http://forums.groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?s=e80f972d7371b78cb647bb1737ee697f&showforum=12
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geocaching
• http://pageocaching.wikispaces.com/
• http://www.geocaching.com/about/glossary.aspx
• http://sciencespot.net/Pages/classgpslsn.html
• www.wherigo.com
• http://www.earthcache.org/
• http://www.geosociety.org/Earthcache_Lessons/Default.aspx
• http://www.waymarking.com/
• http://www.letterboxing.org/
• http://www.youtube.com/user/GoGeocaching
• http://www.youtube.com/user/Educaching
• http://www.podcacher.com/
• http://www.springhurst.org/geocachingkids/events.htm
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pj-vXYkylBo
Contact Information
Melissa Whitman- 610-759-1170 ext 3124 [email protected] Twitter-
OneCleverTchr
Shawn-Kimberly Kocher 610-759-1170 ext 1157 [email protected] Twitter-
ShawnKimberly
Brian Scholl 610-759-1170 ext [email protected]
