One of my favorite uses of technology is Geocaching. Geocaching is an outdoor treasure hunting game. People (geocachers)use handheld GPS devices (even the ones in Smartphones can be used) to find geocaches. I have embedded a short video from Geocaching.com below. I love that Geocaching takes me to places that I had never heard of before. Just last week when I was in NY my dad and I found a geocache at a freshwater spring near my parents house we didn't know existed.(and they have lived there for 35 years).Once you have a handheld GPS device Geocaching is free. It has also been a great thing to do when I have been on vacation. I have found Geocaches in places like Idaho, Utah and Florida. Geocaches can be under water, up in a tree, under a log,or in a lamppost in your local Target parking lot. There are many hidden along the American Tobacco Trail (including a few owned by me).Geocaches can be very small, pretty big or anywhere in between and come in all sorts of containers.The great thing is that you can decide how challenging you want the hunt to be and pick caches to find that work for you. (geocaching.com rates them with terrain ratings (how difficult it is to get to) and difficulty ratings (how difficult it is to find once you get there). There are over one million geocaches worldwide and over 800 within 40 miles of Raleigh.
Check out the world of Geocaching. You won't be disappointed!
Here is a two minute video from www.geocaching.com.
This Powerpoint presentation has lots of good information about Geocaching.
my husband has used geocaching in the classroom quite a bit, and his students have absolutely loved it. anna adam and helen mowers, educators in texas, write about how geocaching can be used effectively in the classroom. the idea is to have students interested in the pursuit of new information. according to the article, "students are really getting into the search now, while at the same time engaging important content and making authentic connections—that’s the potential of geocaching."
ReplyDeletemy goal for the upcoming school year is to geocache four times with my class- once a quarter.
thanks for the inspiration!