My students need the 6 Garmin eTrex GPS devices to participate in Geocaching "treasure" hunting activities related to Common Core Standards. They will use them as teams.
This project is a part of the Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month celebration because
it supports a Latino teacher or a school where the majority of students are Latino.
My Students
Have you ever been on a treasure hunt? Imagine using not only a map and compass to find the treasure, but also the technology of a handheld GPS device. Imagine that the treasures are activities about all the subjects you should learn, but being able to go outside and learn about them in a fun way!
I teach middle school students, grades 6 - 8, in a public K-8 center.
We have all races and levels of SES in our school, though there are over 50% of our students on free and reduced-price lunch. We also have a moderate amount of students in ESE and ESOL.
I aspire to impart a love of General Science and Computer Science in my students by using innovative, hands-on investigations with them. I have also found that having students learn to work as a part of a cooperative group not only makes the learning more entertaining, but also gives them a sense of confidence as they conduct the investigations with their peers. In our geocaching treasure hunts, we will go outside the classroom. Use of the outdoors makes a major contribution to physical and environmental education and enhances many other curriculum areas. Having a change of scenery from indoors to out helps motivate my students to want to learn even more.
My Project
The students will learn about the cardinal directions and how to use technology (the Garmin eTrex 10 handheld GPS receivers, GPSr) to navigate to set coordinates and find "treasure" or caches. The students will be introduced to and learn about the concepts of geocaching -- the activity, the types of caches, and GPS technology such as how to use the Garmin eTrex 10 GPSr to mark a location and to average coordinates for waypoints and use the coordinates to locate the caches. After learning the basics of Geocaching and using the GPSr, students will not only find caches created and hidden by the teacher containing learning activities related to the Common Core Standards, but will also create and hide team caches for others in the class to find as well. The students will keep digital journals in Edmodo about their adventures and will also create multimedia presentations for the class as well. To evaluate the presentations, there will be peer and teacher created criteria and rubrics.
Participation in enjoyable outdoor activities with teachers and peers reinforces a positive attitude to education and contributes significantly to the general ethos of a school.
Experience outdoors stimulates and reinforces learning across many areas of the curriculum. Outdoor activity introduces students to a range of worthy leisure pursuits which will enrich their future lives. Outdoor exercise encourages the maintenance of a healthy lifestyle and sensitivity to and respect for the environment.
Half of students from low‑income households
Data about students' economic need comes from the National Center for Education Statistics, via our partners at MDR Education. Learn more
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Mrs. Rosales and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
