GeocachingUnit

LearningObjectives:
StudentswillusecoordinatesandGPStrackerstolocatecache.
Studentswillcreateacachethatfollowsgeocachingguidelines.
Studentswillfollowandcompletestepsofengineeringdesignprocess.
Studentswilldesignandbuildacachecontainer.
Studentswillfollowgeocachingguidelineswhileparticipatingintheactivity.
StudentswilluseGPStrackerstoidentifycoordinatesofalocation.
StudentswilluseGPStrackertotrackmovementandcreateroutes.
Studentswillfindwaypointsbycalculatingtheaverages.
Studentswillcreatemapsusingwebbasedapplication.

Schedule:

Day1:IntroductiontoGeocaching
Materials
GeocachingNotesWorksheet(attachedpg.5),
WhatisGeocaching?Prezi
,Geocaching
Vocabulary(attachedpg.6),ParentLettertosendhome(attachedpg.7)

Discussion
PresenttheWhatisGeocaching?Preziandwatchtheembeddedvideos(source:
geocaching.com).UsetheNotesworksheettoguidediscussionandcheckforunderstanding.

Activity
GeocachingVocabulary(implementationcanvary)

Day2:UsingEngineeringtoDesignaCache
Materials
Sketchpad
webapplication
,EngineeringDesignProcessDiagram(attachedpg.8)

Discussion
Reviewthediscussionfromthepreviousday.Introduceprojectbytellingstudentsthatthey
willdesignandbuildtheirowngeocache,additscontents,hideit,andwritethecluestofind
it.Askstudentswhattherequirementsareforacachecontainer?Andwhatdoesacache
containerlooklike?(e.g.itiswaterproof,ithasanofficialGeocachelabel,possibly
camouflaged,etc.)Writetheseontheboard.

Activity
Studentswillnowusetheengineeringdesignprocess(EDP)todesignandbuildacache
container.PassoutEDPdiagramanddiscusswithstudentstheneedsoftheircachereferto
boardtoseerequirementsandsorttheseintoCriteriaorConstraints(theywillneedtofill
theseinontheirdiagram).Next,askstudentswhatisthefirststepofthedesignprocessthey
willdoing(answer:identifyingtheproblem).HelpstudentsfillintheIdentifystepoftheEDP
bywritingaproblem(e.g.Needacontainerthatisbigenoughtoholdlogbook,acontainer
thatwontgetwet,etc.).StudentswillworkthroughtheEDPandcompletetheirdiagram.This
willrequireindependentresearch(intowaterproofcontainers,otherkindsofgeocaches)by
1

thestudents.Inthedesignstage,studentswillusetheSketchpadapplicationtocreatea
detaileddrawingoftheircache.

*Remindstudentsthattheywillbecreating/buildingtheircaches,sothematerialsthatthey
choosemustbeeasilyfoundatschoolorhome.Askstudentstoassemblethemathomeor
bringthematerialstoclasstobuildthem(iftheydontrequiretools)

Day3:UsingEngineeringtoDesignaCache
Materials
Sketchpad
webapplication
,EngineeringDesignProcessDiagram(attachedpg.8)

Activity
StudentswillcontinuetoworkontheircachemodelsontheSketchpadapplication.

Day4:UsingGPSTrackers
Materials
GPStrackers,GPSSkillsList(attachedpg.9)

Discussion
Putobjectivelistontheboardanddiscusswithstudentsthedifferentskillsyouwillbe
learning.GiveeachpairofstudentsaGPStracker.GuidethemthroughoperatingtheGPS
trackerandcompletingeachofthetasks.

Day5:FindingCoordinatesonCampus
Materials
CoordinatesAroundCampusworksheet(attachedpg.10)

Discussion
BrieflyreviewhowtomarkpointsontheGPStrackersandfindthecoordinatesofalocation.

Activity
Setoutonatouroftheschool.(Eachpairofstudentswillhave1GPStracker,andthey
shouldtaketurnsoperatingtheGPStrackerandwritingdownthecoordinates.)Thetour
shouldinclude810locationsaroundtheschoolswhereyouandyourclasscancongregate
foracoupleofminutes.Choosethelocationsbeforebeginning,butdonottellstudentsuntil
youareatthatlocation.WhenatthelocationsstudentswillusetheGPSdevicetofindthe
coordinatesandfillinthelocationandthecoordinatesontheirworksheets.

Days6&7:CreatingMap&DocumentingCoordinates
Materials
Sketchpad
webapplication

Activity
StudentswillusetheirCoordinateTrackingworksheet,andcreateamapdrawingin
Sketchpadoftheschool,theircoordinatepoints,andtheroutetakenonthetour.Map
shouldincludeallstopsonthetour,buildingsorlandmarksonthecampus,andthe
coordinatesofthestops.(Seeattachedexamplepg.11)
M.Taylor2015
2

Day8:WaypointAveraging
Materials
Calculators(optional),HowtoAverageWaypointsPresentation(via
HaikuDeck
),Averaging
PracticeWorksheet(attachedpg.12)

Discussion
Gothroughthepresentationwithstudentsanddiscussthestepsofaveragingwaypoints.

Activity
AftercompletingthepresentationgivestudentstheAveragingPracticeworksheetto
complete.Iffinishedbeforeclassends,gooveranswers.

Day9:FindingaHidingSpot
Materials
GPSTrackers,MyCoordinatesworksheet(attachedpg.13)

Discussion
Tellstudentsthattodaywetheywillbefindingahidingspotfortheircache.Discussthe
rulesoftheactivity:(1)Theymuststaywithintheassignedarea.(2)Therecachecannotbein
thesamehidingplaceasanothercache.(3)Theycannotburythecache.(4)Theycannotput
thecacheinalockedbuilding/room.(5)Theycannotputthecacheoutofreach(e.g.onthe
roofortoohightoreach).

Activity
Studentswillchoosealocationtohidetheircache.Usingtheirtracker,studentswillfind5
coordinatesandwritethemdownontheirworksheet.

Day10:WritingCacheDescriptions
Materials
HowtoWriteaCacheDescriptionInstructions&Examples(attachedpg.14)

Discussion
Goto
geocaching.com
andshowstudentsafewCachedescriptions.Pointoutthedifferent
partsofthedescriptionandtheinformationitincludes(Title,TerrainRating,Difficulty
Rating).Next,gothroughtheinstructions(attached)anddiscusstheactivitywithstudents.

Activity
Studentswillwriteadescriptionpostforthecachetheywillhide.Displayinstructionsonboard
andallowstudentstofollowexampleifneeded.

Day11&12:PreparingCaches
Materials
Constructionpaper/leaves/othercamouflagingmaterials,GeocachingLabels(example
attachedpg.15),extracachecontainers,extratoys(smallandcheap)orgoodies
M.Taylor2015
3


Discussion
Reviewtheobjectsandmaterialsthatgoinsideacache.Discusswithstudentshowto
preparethecache.

Activity
Studentswilleachpreparetheirindividualcaches.

Day13:HidingCaches
Materials
StudentsCacheboxes,StudentsCachedescriptions,GPStrackers

Discussion
Gooverinstructionsforhidingcache.

Activity
Studentswilltakecachestotheirchosenhidingplace.Beforeleavingthecache,studentswill
doublechecktheGPScoordinateswiththeirwaypointaverage(thesetwonumbersshouldbe
close).Studentswillleavecache.*CollectCacheDescriptionsbeforeendingclass.

Day14:FindingCaches
Materials
StudentsCacheDescriptions,GPStrackers

Discussion
Gooverrulesandproceduresfortheactivity.GiveeachstudentanotherstudentsCache
Description(theycannotaskthehiderforhelp).

Activity
Gooutsideandbeginsearchingforthecaches.Whenfoundstudentsneedtosignthe
logbookandbringthecachebox(anditscontents)backtoasetmeetingplace.

Day15:Assessment
Assessment
Choosemethod/toolforassessingstudentsunderstandingofGeocachingVocabularyandthe
rulesandprocessofpreparingandfindingcaches.(Exampleassessmentattachedpg.16)

M.Taylor2015
4

Name:
GeocachingNotes
1.

Geocachingisa_______________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________

2.

Youmustnavigatetoasetof_________________________________.

3.

TogogeocachingIneed________________and______________________.

4.

Howisthegameofgeocachingplayed?1.__________________________,
2.___________________________,3._______________________________,
4._____________________________,5.______________________________.

5.

Wherecangeocachesbefound?
____________________________________________________________________

6.

Whataretwokindsofgeocaches?
______________________________&_____________________________________

7.

Whatdogeocacheslooklike?
____________________________________________________________________

8.

Thereare___________(howmany)rulesingeocaching.

9.

Therulesare:_________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________

10.

Name2thingsthatmightbeinageocache:
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________

M.Taylor2015
5

1.

GeocachingVocabulary

CITOCacheintrashoutisanongoingenvironmentalinitiativesupportedbythe
worldwidegeocachingcommunity.

2.

DNFDidnotfind.Anacronymusedbygeocacherstostatethattheydidnotfinda
cache.

3.

D/TGeocachesareratedintwocategories,eachdesignedona5pointscale.A1/1
difficulty/terrainratingwouldbetheeasiestcachetofind,whilea5/5difficulty/terrain
ratingwouldbethemostdifficult.

4.

FTFFirsttofind.Anacronymusedbygeocachersinphysicalcachelogbooksor
onlinewhenloggingcachefindatodenotebeingthefirstanewgeocache.

5.

GeocacheAhiddencontainerthatincludes,ataminimum,alogbookforgeocachers
tosign.

6.

GeocachingGeocachingisaworldwidegameofhidingandseekingtreasure.A
geocachercanplaceageocacheintheworld,pinpointitslocationusingGPS
technologyandthensharethecachesexistenceandlocationonline.

7.

GroundZeroThepointwhereyourGPSdeviceshowsthatyouhavereachedthe
cachelocation.Atgroundzero,arezerofeetawayfromyourdestination

8.

HitchhikerAhitchhikerisanitemthatisplacedinacache,andhasinstructionsto
traveltoothercaches.ATravelBugisanexofahitchhiker

9.

LatitudeLatitudeandlongitudecreateawaypoint.ALatitudeisanangulardistance
northfromsouthfromtheEarth'sequatormeasuredthrough90degrees.

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

15.

LongitudeLatitudeandLongitudecreateawaypoint.Longitudetheangulardistance
measuredongreatcircleofreferencefromtheintersectionoftheadoptedzero
meridianwiththisreferencecirclesimilarintersectionofthemeridianpassingthrough
theobject.
MuggleAnongeocacher.
SignatureItemAnitemuniquetoaspecificgeocacherthatisleftbehindincachesto
signifythattheyvisitedthatcache.Theseoftenincludepersonalgeocoins,tokens,
pins,craftitemsorcallingcards.
TFTCThanksforthecache.
TNLNSLTooknothing.Leftnothing.
TravelBugAtrackabletagthatyouattachtoanitem.

M.Taylor2015
6

DearParents&Guardians,

InGatewaytoTechnologywehavestartedlearningaboutGeocaching.Ifyouare
unfamiliarwiththegame,geocachingisaworldwideadventureoffindinghiddentreasure(or
caches).Ageocachercanplaceageocacheintheworld,pinpointitslocationusingGPS
technologyandthensharethecachesexistenceandlocationonline.

Bytheendofthisunit,studentswillhavecreatedtheirowngeocachethattheywill
hidesomewhereontheschoolcampus,identifytheGPScoordinates,andandfindanother
studentscache.TheywilllearnetiquetteofGeocachingandtheprocessofcreating,hiding,
andfindingcaches.Whenfinishedwiththisunit,theywillhavetheknowledgeandskillstodo
thisfunandenrichingactivitywithfamily.

Studentswillbeusingtheengineeringdesignprocesstodesignandcreateacacheto
useinclass.Thiscouldbesomethingthatisconstructedathome,orsimplyasmall
tupperwarecontainer.*Ifyouaskyourstudentabouthisdesignandhelphimorherto
construct,itwouldhelpusgetthisprojectgoing.Pleaseaskthemtosharewithyouthe
physicalrequirementsofcachecontainer(wehavetalkedaboutthisinclass).Theyhavethe
optiontopreparetheirbasiccontainerathomeandwewilladdcamouflageinclass,orthey
canbringthematerialstoclassandconstructithere(iftheydonotneedtoolsfoundat
home).
*Anytypeofcontaineryousendwillbereturnedattheendofthe3weekunit.

Iwouldalsolikeforstudentstobring1or2itemsfromhometoputintheircache.
Typicallythetreasurefoundinacacheissmall,inexpensiveitemsthatwouldbecoolto
find.**Examplesincludesmallactionfigures,happymealtoys,toycars,smallbooks,
drawing,smallflashlights,souvenirsandmore.Theonlyconstraintsarethatitcannotbe
food/candyorexpensive(andofcourseitcannotbeanykindofweaponorflammableitem).It
isnotnecessarytogooutandbuyanynewtoysforthecachejustaskyourstudenttolook
throughaboxofoldtoysforsomethingheorshewouldbeokaywithgivingaway.
**Studentswillnotgetbacktheoriginalitemstheyputintheircache,buttheywillgetwhatevertheyfindin
anotherstudentscache.

Ifyouhaveanyquestions,pleaseemailmeat___________________.

Thankyouforyoursupport,

M.Taylor2015
7

M.Taylor2015
8

GPSSkillsObjectiveList
Today,wewillanswerthefollowingquestions:
1. HowdoIturnonGPStracker?
2. Whatdothebuttonsandcontrolsonthetrackerdo?
3. Whatdothemenuiconsmean?
4. HowdoImarkawaypoint?
5. HowdoImakethescreenbrighter?
6. HowdoIfindmylocationonthemap?
7. HowdoIlookatoldwaypoints?
8. HowdoIusethecompass?
9. HowdoIcreatearoute?
10. HowdoIturnthetrackeroff?

M.Taylor2015
9

GroupNames:
CoordinatesAroundCampus

LocationName

GPSCoordinates

10

M.Taylor2015
10

MapExample

M.Taylor2015
11

AveragingWaypointsPractice

CalculatethewaypointaverageofeachsetofGPScoordinates.

1.
N32.78,W96.80
N32.65,W96.89
N32.99,W96.56
N32.38,W96.43
N32.63,W97.10

2.
N17.50,W88.20
N17.59,W88.12
N17.41,W88.87
N17.67,W88.30
N17.32,W88.29

3.
N35.86,E104.20
N35.71,E104.27
N35.97,E104.14
N35.80,E104.23
N35.62,E104.39

4.
S30.56,E22.93
S30.50,E22.87
S30.46,E22.97
S30.78,E22.75
S30.62,E22.90

MyCacheCoordinates
M.Taylor2015
12

Name:

GPSCoordinate#1:
Gotheexactlocationofyourcache.
(Putsomethingonthegroundtotemporarilymarkthe
location.)FindcoordinatesinyourGPStracker.Writeitbelow.

__________________________________________________________________________

GPSCoordinate#2:
Walk5largestepsnorthofyourcache.
FindcoordinatesinyourGPStracker.Writeit
below.

__________________________________________________________________________

GPSCoordinate#3:
Gobacktoyourcachelocation.
Walk5largestepssouthofyourcache.
Findcoordinates
inyourGPStracker.Writeitbelow.

__________________________________________________________________________

GPSCoordinate#4:
Gobacktoyourcachelocation.
Walk5largestepswestofyourcache.
Findcoordinatesin
yourGPStracker.Writeitbelow.

__________________________________________________________________________

GPSCoordinate#5:
Gobacktoyourcachelocation.
Walk5largestepseastofyourcache.
Findcoordinatesin
yourGPStracker.Writeitbelow.

__________________________________________________________________________

M.Taylor2015
13

HowtoWriteaCacheDescription

M.Taylor2015
14

GeocacheContainerLabel

M.Taylor2015
15

GeocachingTest
Part1:VocabularyMatching
Matchthefollowingvocabularywordswiththecorrectdefinitionbelow.
Writethe
letterintheblanknexttothedefinition.
A. geocaching
B. travelbug
C. DNF
D. FTF
E. muggle
F. globalpositioningsystem
G. latitude
H. longitude
I. cache
J. groundzero
K. waypoint
L. signatureitem
M. TNLN
N. spoiler
O. TFTC

_________1.Hiddencontainerthatholdsalogbook
_________2.DistancenorthandsouthoftheEquator
_________3.ThanksfortheCache
_________4.Itemthatisuniquetoaspecificgeocacher
_________5.personwhodoesnotdogeocaching
_________6.PointwhereyourGPSdeviceshowsthatyouhavereachedthecachelocation
_________7.Worldwidegameofhidingandfindingatreasure
_________8.SystemofsatellitesthathelpdetermineyourlocationontheEarth
_________9.FixedlocationinyourGPSdeviceafavoritelocation
_________10.Didnotfind
_________11.DistanceeastorwestofthePrimeMeridian
_________12.Tooknothingleftnothing
_________13.tagyoucanattachtoanitemthatallowsyoutotrackyouritem
_________14.Firsttofind
_________15.Informationthatcangivedetailsawayandruinthefun

M.Taylor2015
16

Part2:TrueorFalse
AnswerifeachofthestatementsisTrueorFalse.
WriteTorFintheblank.
_________16.Ageocachecanbeburiedunderground.
_________17.Ageocachecanbehiddenwithleavesorsticks.
_________18.YoucankeepanitemwithaTravelBugforever.
_________19.Youcanputapieceofyourfavoritecandyinageocache.
_________20.Ifyoutakesomethingoutofacache,youleavesomethingofequalvalue.

Part3:LocatingCoordinates
Lookatthemapattached.Foreachsetofcoordinatespickwhatsymbolisatthat
point.
Writetheletterofthecorrectanswernexttothenumber.

_________21.Whatislocatedatthecoordinates80S,40W.
A. Star
B. Square
C. Heart
D. Circle

_________22.Whatislocatedatthecoordinates60N,80E.
A. Star
B. Square
C. Heart
D. Circle

_________23.Whatislocatedatthecoordinates20S,60E.
A. Star
B. Square
C. Heart
D. Circle

_________24.Whatislocatedatthecoordinates0,60W.
A. Star
B. Square
C. Heart
D. Circle

_________25.Whatislocatedatthecoordinates40N,100W.
A. Star
B. Square
C. Heart
D. Circle

M.Taylor2015
17