Ninety students trekked around in Discovery Park on Thursday armed with handheld GPS units, pocket PCs and 
cameras in search of small two-inch caches (treasures). The day was gifted to Stella Schola Middle School through a grant from the Lake Washington Schools Foundation and a generous donation from Playtime, Inc.
A GPS (Global Positioning System) unit is an electronic device that can determine a person’s approximate location (within around 6-20 feet) anywhere on the planet. Coordinates are normally given in longitude and latitude. A person can use the unit to navigate from your current location to another location. Some units have their own maps, built-in electronic compasses, and voice navigation, depending on the complexity of the device.
Geocaching is an entertaining adventure game for GPS users. Participating in a ‘cache hunt’ is a good way to take advantage of the wonderful features and capability of a GPS unit. The basic idea is to for students to use their GPS unit through location coordinates to find the caches (small trinket treasures or pre-planted information/clues to solve a bigger puzzle). "In today’s high-tech world, it’s important that students are able to use new tools to assist them in their studies. By integrating the use of GPS (Global Positioning System) with Science, Language Arts, Logical Thinking, Mathematics, and Problem Solving, we can motivate our 6th, 7th, and 8th graders by using technology to enhance skills in many areas and create unique opportunities for them to problem solve and work as teams," said Head Mistress, Brigitte Tennis.
Students were grouped in multi-age teams to navigate a 3.5 mile course designed just for Stella Schola Middle School at Discovery Park in Seattle by Playtime, Inc. Students got training on how to use a hand-held GPS unit and each student had their own for the day! "Be on the lookout!" student Christopher Moore advised as his team slogged through the blackberry bushes. As sixth grade teacher Liz Warren looked on, she commented, "They don't even realize they are learning! That's the beauty of integration!" Another group used teamwork to hoist 7th grader, Lyle Rudnicki, up into the crux of a tree where he triumphantly held up the cache, while eighth grade teacher Mark Gorchels snapped a digital picture to prove they had found the cache. Where will the next cache be? It could be anywhere!
Stella Schola staff plan to extend the GPS experience to practice skills including orienteering (Science), finding locations using latitude and longitude (Social Studies), and group problem solving in the future.