Hide Caches at the school I teach

[+cwa314]

I watch a video (Amazing!) of a teacher from Texas who has been hiding Caches at her school. She has GPS trackers from Grounds keepers (I think), I would like to start this as part of my PE classes for the spring. Does anyone know where I could find, GPS trackers &/or do I need to fill out the forms for hiding a cache on this website? 

Chris 

[Keystone]

Thanks for your interest in sharing geocaching with your students! You probably saw videos of "private caches," hidden by the teacher just for her students to find.  That's because geocaches are typically not published on or near school properties.  To be published on Geocaching.com, geocaches must be accessible to all users, and this often presents perceived security issues when it comes to people wandering around the school campus in search of a hidden cache. 

 

If you were thinking of a public park, forest, etc. near the school, that would be different.

[+Hiking Cockroachess]

7 hours ago, cwa314 said:

I watch a video (Amazing!) of a teacher from Texas who has been hiding Caches at her school. She has GPS trackers from Grounds keepers (I think), I would like to start this as part of my PE classes for the spring. Does anyone know where I could find, GPS trackers &/or do I need to fill out the forms for hiding a cache on this website? 

Chris 

Chris, I used to head up a geocaching club at the elementary school where I taught. Due to a) school regulations and then b) GC guidelines, we didn't have a permanent cache on school grounds. Each week, before the group met, I would run out to place our small to micro hides on the property (which didn't have a whole lot of hiding spots). 

At the time, there was no GC app. I wrote for grant monies for six units, supplimented by three of my own, that we shared. Fair warning...half of the units were broken within two years.  Kids are tough on tech. This was back in the day of the yellow eTrex units that were relatively affordable. You'd still have to work with gpsr's, as the app doesn't allow for private hides (that I know of).

-HC

[+Max and 99]

12 minutes ago, Hiking Cockroachess said:

You'd still have to work with gpsr's, as the app doesn't allow for private hides (that I know of).

True, but.... does the app let everyone (even non PM) add waypoints to a cache page? You can use those even for a temporary cache.

[Darwin473]

One possible option which would also require an expenditure of funds but less than to purchase a quantity of GPSr is: I have seen a group that had a quantity of actual letterboxes (or similar permanent boxes) mounted around the grounds. Each was marked with a number (or can be a name).

 

Prior to the start, the coordinator puts a message, code or instruction in each (or some) of the letterboxes. The participants are organised into groups, and each was given a list of letterboxes to visit. The lists were different, so the groups couldn't "cheat" by following each other. Depending on the size of the group, a different participant was in charge of leading to the group to the next letterbox so they all get a chance to be the searcher.

 

In their case, each group also had a hand-held radio, and when they got to their location they had to call in the code they found in the letterbox. The code would "prove" they found that letterbox, and the other groups couldn't just listen to others because they didn't know which letterboxes other groups were visiting. First team back wins.

 

As it's for PE, alternatives could be that different letterboxes hold an instruction to find a different item and carry it back to the central location. Alternatively, they could be required to take a photo of something and either show it on their phone or send it to the coordinator. For a less strenuous workout, they just need to fill in the code words on their list. Or they need to visit their letterboxes in order, which each hold a number, at each they get part of the lat/long of a country, county, city or famous building (depending on how accurate you want it to be) and use their phones to look up that lat/long and report what they find there.

 

This example is probably closer to orienteering than geocaching but once set up, it would be easy to repeat - even with the same students. Just need the effort to go around placing the instructions / codes / messages in each letterbox and writing up the lists. Letterboxes shouldn't need locking to prevent interference from non-class students as any others that get curious and open the letterbox would just see a bit of paper with a word or number, or something written in whiteboard marker or chalk.

 

Administration may be more willing to release funds for a quantity of metal boxes or letterboxes from Lowes which will last several years rather than some electronic handheld units which could be broken and harder to replace as Hiking Cockroachess pointed out. Or combine with shop class and have students make wooden ones in a variety of styles? Permanent or semi-permanent fixed hides may be easier to get approval for, as students wouldn't get "inspired" to pull things apart, climb under / over things or start digging looking for a hidden container.

[+vw_k]

On the subject of letterboxes, an activity could be set up that uses a map, grid references and compass bearings, as are traditionally used in the hobby of "letterboxing". A custom map with grid references could be made by laying a grid over a plan of the school, and basic compasses are much cheaper than GPS units.