Dr. Alice Christie and Geocaching in the Classroom

I found this part of Dr. Christie's site very interesting. I had never thought about using a GPS system in a classroom, but after exploring this part of the site I can see it now. At first I wondered if it would be applicable in a 1st or 2nd grade classroom. As I continued to explore, I realized that if a teacher wanted to use this type of technology, she could make it work with any age. The only difference is the amount of time spent on instruction and teacher involvement. By teacher involvement I mean that with the younger ones, the teacher might have to be part of the group that is looking for the geocaches instead of letting them do it alone as you might an older group. If there is an interest in this technology, I believe it is possible with any age group.

It could also be used as a collaborative teaching project with another class. It would not have to be a class of the same grade, it could be any other class that the teacher is willing to learn new technology with you. If you have younger students and pair with an older class, it gives the younger ones an opportunity to learn from the older ones and gives the older ones the opportunity to teach and help the younger ones understand the project. These type of collaborative projects benefit everyone involved.

As interested as I was in this part of Dr. Christie's site, I was very disappointed that the curriculum examples for elementary classes were unavailable on the site. I hope this is a temporary thing because I am very interested in seeing what she has to offer the younger grades.

Another part of the site that I want to mention is the photography part. Her pictures are wonderful. I enjoyed the different perspectives in her self-portrait (Found Here). There are many ways of looking at and seeing yourself and she shows us many facets of herself. However, my favorite picture is found in "A Colorful Morning st Flagstaff Farmers' Market". It is a picture of toes...baby toes. I happen to love baby feet and so it is my favorite. It is the third picture from the end. You can see it here.