Outpost: Expeditions Central @ nationalgeographic.com

RETURN TO EXPEDITIONS CENTRAL | DISPATCH DEPOT | EDUCATION SITE

Elementary School (K - 4) | Middle School (5 - 8) | High School (9 - 12)

Lead the children in a discussion of why the class might want to go on their own expedition. Discuss different places they might explore, e.g. a desert, an ocean, a jungle, or the moon. Have the children think about why going to these places might help them learn more than simply reading about or observing them. As an art project, the class can use old cardboard boxes to create vehicles for exploration. The vehicles should be “adapted” to the environment they will explore. The crafts can later be used as spaces for silent reading.

Have the children create an “open mind”: pictures, words, and images that reflect what an individual on an expedition is thinking. These individuals could be people who are on National Geographic Outpost expeditions, new students in the classroom, or anyone entering a new environment. The aim is for the students to see the common threads among different expeditions and the challenges that individuals in those expeditions may face.

Have the children split up into groups according to the particular expedition they would like to join: one to the moon, the ocean, the jungle, or the desert. Give each group an envelope with a variety of everyday household objects (i.e. toothpicks, straws, buttons, tissues, etc.) in it. Have each group come up with how they would use these objects together on the expedition. Each member of the group can then draw how the objects will be used to aid the project.

Have the children brainstorm 10 to 15 nouns, 10 to 15 verbs, and 10 to 15 adjectives relating to the idea of an expedition. After the list is complete, have each child create his own paragraph or picture of an expedition using the words from the brainstorm. Through this activity, the children can identify both the variety of possibilities in an expedition and also the varying perspectives of the individuals involved.

Have the children draw a picture of how they might spend an ordinary afternoon. After completion, have the students draw a tent around their pictures and an outdoor setting around their tents. Have the children swap papers. Using someone else’s paper, a student can then see how many things in his classmate’s picture do not make sense if that child was on an expedition (i.e. Nintendo, television, microwave, etc.)

MIDDLE SCHOOL (5 - 8)

Have the children brainstorm a list of things that they might bring, if space was not an option, on a vacation. After 30 or so suggestions have been made, have each student select six or eight things that she would take on an expedition of her choice. After making the selection, the child can then submit her list of what to pack along with the reasoning behind each choice.

Have each child create a front page of a newspaper that contains, among other things, at least three articles having to do with expeditions. One article must be a factual article about an expedition that took place at least ten years ago. Another must have to do with a present-day expedition. The final article must be one about the future expedition the author of the article hopes to one day take part in.

After teaching the children the basics of a compass, have students work in small groups to create scavenger hunts in which the directions rely on compasses. Compasses can usually be obtained on loan through local Boy/Girl Scout offices.

Have two children leave the classroom and visit a particular area of the school campus. When they return to the classroom, have those children describe that area with as much detail as possible so that their classmates can create a map of it. After completing the map, have the whole class head toward the area. Each student can then create another map using his own observations, along with measuring tools. Upon completion of the second map, lead a discussion of the process of map drawing and why one approach differed from the other.

HIGH SCHOOL (9 - 12)

Tell students that NASA is about to launch a new shuttle mission. The scientists are looking for a great historic explorer or expedition after which to name the shuttle. Have students browse the various National Geographic Outpost expeditions. Each student must pick an explorer, research their expedition, and come up with an argument for why that expedition or explorer should be the shuttle’s namesake. Students can create presentations that outline the evidence they have collected for their choices.

Have students research the names of local individuals who have been a part of an expedition or exploration, no matter how big or small. Have students interview those individuals about the expeditions they took part in. Through their research, students can then create a journal of the expedition, the events leading up to the expedition, and a summary of what happened when those explorers returned.

As a creative writing piece, have students write letters through the eyes of explorers about to set off on expeditions. These letters could be ones written to the explorers’ children, explaining why the explorers chose to go on the expeditions given the risks involved.

To expand the students’ ideas of what constitutes an expedition, have each student take part in his or her own small exploration of a particular aspect of high school life. For example, students may choose to take part in an expedition to a rival high school, noting the similarities and differences they encounter. One student may focus on the building architecture and design, while another may focus on cultural aspects. Each student will aim to answer a particular question through such exploration and will present the findings to his fellow scientists/anthropologists.