Adventure Outdoors


Plan a Hike! (Ages 8-10)


If you and your child want to enjoy an adventure outdoors look no further than here! With this activity your child will practice reading and understanding a map, learn out to use a PC and the internet, work on his math skills and exercise!

Instructions:
  • Decide on the length of the hike, for instance 3.5 miles (5 kilometers). Ask your kid to plan a hike that involves walking through city blocks, interesting locations, and a park or woods.
  • Have your child online on Google Maps to find a location not too far from your house. Print out the map. Make sure that your kid takes note of the scale in the lower-hand corner of the map. Ask him to find a path on the map of a length of 3.5 miles.
  • Have him use the map's scale on Google Maps to measure the length from one interesting location to another. For instance, the distance from the City Hall to the park.
  • On the map have him write the distance between each interesting locations. Have him also estimate the time it will take to go from one point to another, and the total estimated length of the hike using an average forecasted speed of walk.
  • Check the weather, wear appropriate clothing and go on a hike! After the hike, compare the time it took you to complete it to the estimated time calculated by your child. If the estimated time is close to the actual time, your child will really feel a sense of pride.


Benefits: Good for exercise for both you and your child :). This fun activity outdoors increases PC/internet skills, practices reading and understanding a map , enhances math skills as your kid adds the distance between key locations and calculates the time.




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