Here are some ideas I had for programs which were well liked at NYLA for their regional focus:
- How to Geocaching – Demonstrate how to use a GPS and then have fun as Geocaching combines aspects of treasure-hunting, high-tech navigation, and exploration. For children, hide boxes around the community and put library cards inside. Use the library website to provide coordinates.
- Hike your town. Children love scats, tracks, gorp recipes, animal and plant identification. I put together some hikes using books on all these topics into a package which included a map of the hike, written directions, a gorp recipe, some animal photos, illustrations of common scats and tracks, and a clothing and sunscreen advisory. Several libraries have used the hikes I customized for them with success.
elizabeth
I hosted a Geocaching program for kids and their parents a few years ago. We were loaned several handheld GPS units from the Geospatial Information and Technology Association with their Location in Education Program. We just had to pay for the shipping-https://www.gita.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=18:location-in-education&catid=2:uncategorised&Itemid=197.
We visited different sites around the downtown and they collected little histories about the buildings so we combined learning how to use GPS and coordinates with local history.
It was pretty well received. Oddly, the parents who were the most leery of the activity were the ones who completed the whole hunt.