suspending the timetable

We are currently planning to suspend our school timetable for the Year 9 and 10 students. 760 students will be undertaking an activity or activities for three days. This has been discussed for a couple of years and has been of great debate.

I will provide some more parts in this later on, once I get the presentation.

We have been asked to come up with ideas on what could be done by the staff to facilitate this process, and I must say I am surprised. I would say three quarters of the suggestions relate to EOTC, Education Outside The Classroom. Through the use of orienteering, tramps, surfing, and others. Now this raises a question, why are all these for outside the classroom, I would say that staff find it difficult to take students out of the class during school time, though three days in which we are to do various activities brings some light to the somewhat dark and dormant school.

My Idea, so far... is

Get Lost!

I wish to undertake a project of an urban journey. A range of Orienteering, map reading, geocaching, and mobile technology.

I would like to use it as a sort of Wherigo exercise, http://www.Wherigo.com/default.aspx

the reason is that then students can create there own for next years students. If this continues, this will mean that they have to work out various objects that will not move or be changed.

How is this done, students map out a area that they wish to use.

They then create a story to go along with a theme

http://www.gis2gps.com/GPS/lessonplans/gpsplans.htm

http://garmin.blogs.com/my_weblog/2006/03/geocaching_at_s.html

For a different take on running a wide game, why not try doing an Amazing Race?

It takes quite a lot of organisation but makes an exciting evening without costing too much. Work out a route including public transport (bus train or ferry), use a different method of collecting each new set of instructions, add a couple of challenges and send an adult along with each group.

Some ways to hand out instructions:

• Map grid points
• Collect emailed instructions at a net café.
• Pick them up from an information centre or kindly shopkeeper.
• Go to page x and line y in the white pages.
• Challenge the shifty looking person dressed in aqua for your next clue.
• Sealed envelopes with a code inside.
• Use tracking signs (if they are unlikely to be disturbed)

Challenges along the way might include:

• Playing boules or frisbee golf in a park.
• Collecting scavenger hunt items - a foreign coin, a café napkin, some sand, a native leaf, an autograph, the cost of something, passport photo of the whole team.
• Solving puzzles.
• Airhockey or tablesoccer at an entertainment arcade - the whole group to participate

An alternative, though this just lasts one hour...

http://www.dayinthecloud.com/

One hour.
Brain-busting questions.