Get Your Bearings

Online Extra: Orienteering activity, courtesy of The Roger Tory Peterson Institute

The topographic sketch seen above is part of one of several reproducible handouts that complement the orienteering activity. Click here to see the reproducibles.

Orienteering is the practice of using a map and a compass to find points in a landscape. It can be done on a leisurely walk in the woods, but some people engage in orienteering as a sport. Either way, reading a topographical map and interpreting map features to actual terrain features are valuable skills for kids to have. The Institute's mission is to create passion for and knowledge of the natural world in the hearts and minds of children by inspiring and guiding the study of nature in our schools and communities.

Downloadable materials. With that mission in mind, we're pleased to offer this orienteering activity to Teaching K-8's readers. Here you'll find instructions for the activity, as well as reproducible student handouts that complement the activity. The only other materials you'll need will be USGS (Quadrangle) topographical maps of your region (available from USGS Earth Science Information Centers at 888-ASK-USGS or ask@usgs.gov) and compasses.

It's a good idea to start the activity by reviewing the information found on the maps, such as the title (which indicates the state and quadrangle portion shown on the map), the source (which indicates the map maker – USGS or DMAT), the scale (which indicates the conversion data, such as 1" of map measure = 24,000 inches of ground measure on a 1:24,000 scale map), distance measuring bars, the contour interval, the compass rose and the angle of declination diagram (which indicates the differences between Grid North, True North and Magnetic North).

Nature within our grasp. The materials you'll find here include reproducible illustrations of the seven basic terrain features students will need to become familiar with for orienteering. In addition to using the reproducible drawings, you can teach students the terrain features with their own hands, using the "FIST" model, which represents terrain features as shown above.

Then grab your maps and compasses and lead your students outside to find examples of terrain features in their own familiar world. From there, they'll be able to go anywhere.

Online Extra: Orienteering activity, courtesy of The Roger Tory Peterson Institute

This activity and supplementary materials are available in Learning About Our Place, a book of 47 lesson plans from the Roger Tory Peterson Institute. For more information about the book, visit www.rtpi.org

January, 2004, Vol.34, No.4