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The main purpose for this site is to help boy scouts prepare for and pass off the orienteering merit badge. Although the focus is on boy scouts, this site is open to anyone interested in learning more about map & compass and orienteering.
Orienteering - A Brief Explanation
If you're interested in how this all got started, a brief history of orienteering can be found here. For me, the most important thing to remember about orienteering is that it's fun! Think of it like an Easter-egg hunt and you start with a map where all of the eggs are hidden. The most common objective of orienteering is to collect them all in the right order and in the fastest time.
Current site objectives
The current focus of this project will be to train and pass off four orienteering skills: 1) orienting a map, 2) taking a bearing, 3) measuring distance on a map and 4) using contour lines and terrain features.
Resources & How They're Organized on this site
There are five main parts to this site:
Orienting A Map
Taking A Bearing
Measuring Distance on a Map
Using Contour Lines and Terrain Features
Practice & Testing - downloadable practice assignment, answer key and quiz
This list of links will appear as tabs at the top of each page of this site.
Expectations
My past experience is that boys get bored really fast when they hear me talk. So, here's an opportunity for them to hear other people explain things instead.
What I expect of the boys
1) Check out this site - Boys should look through the resources on this site, review the tutorial links and do the practice assignment before approaching me with questions.
2) Practice assignment - Boys should print up the practice assignment and complete it the best they can before scheduling a time to meet with me. I will want to see what they have accomplished to know better how to help them.
3) Scout law & oath - I feel strongly about the Scout law and the Scout oath. That should be the conduct any time I meet with a boy or a group.
4) Two-Deep leadership - Boys should come accompanied by an adult, otherwise I will not be able to meet with you.
What I expect of myself
1) I should be prepared to answer your questions
2) I expect myself to behave according to the Scout law and the Scout oath as well. Boys deserve respect!
3) Success - My idea of success is to help pass off all of the requirements for the orienteering merit badge. I want to help boys to finish what they start, not add to the long list of partials that collect dust and never get completed.
Links
| Home Page | Orienting A Map | Taking A Bearing |
| Measuring Distance | Contour Lines & Terrain Features | Practice & Quiz |
