QR Geo-Treasure Hunt

This is just a quick description of a project I have going at school. I’m being ably assisted by a student with a love for technology and an understanding of networks (that I don’t possess).
We have been keen to get QR codes working in an everyday way at school. Most kids have a smart phone or iPod that is capable of running a QR reader app. As another way of interesting and engaging kids in the use of technology we decided to build a wireless server that was capable of hosting our QR URL’s.
We got our hands on an old laptop that had been superseded and I had a wireless router that was no longer needed. It would become a local wireless server, with no connection to the internet. The laptop had a WordPress blog platform installed on it. The URLs that the QR codes link to will be posts or pages on that blog.

The trial we started was a Geo-Treasure hunt. Without a Web connection, we obviously couldn’t go out to places like Google Maps, so we came up with an alternative.
We actually created our own Google Map images of the school, with key locations pinned.

 

We snipped an image of the pin location (using the Windows 7 snipping tool – awesome utility) and embedded the image into a new post on the WordPress blog install. This gave us the unique URL to create a QR from. The QR code was printed out and put on the noticeboard outside the room with the wireless router.

The kids come along, scan the QR code and see the image on their screens.

The instructions on the page also tell them what to do – find something, collect something, do something and where to go with the evidence. The winners get a prize. The results of our tests are very encouraging. We are going to roll out the Geo-treasure hunt to the wider school population in Week 10.

No need for reams of QR codes cluttering your noticeboard. A QR code can be re-used, just by changing the blog post contents. The range of the wireless router is pretty impressive too, with reception up to 200m away, which gives us plenty of scope for code content and sites of  deployment.

Although we are not in the roll out stage yet, many kids have noticed the wireless network on their devices and want to know what it is. Their interest is certainly piqued. Once this picks up momentum, and I’m sure it will, I’m sure things like daily notices, permission notes and other mundane daily tasks will become more engaging and fun for the kids.

DIY fitness analysis graphs

Fitness analysis devices have developed so quickly over the last few years that what was thought to be schmick not that long ago is now very dated.

Heart rate monitors (HRMs) have evolved from simple HR measurement tools into devices that measure heart rate, track your training route via GPS and allow uploads to your PC, or to online analysis sites like Garmin Connect.

These days, anything you buy for your school should have the following as standard:

• PC connectivity and software that allows exchange of data between device and PC
• GPS
• HRM
• Functions that will provide results for analysis (eg. speed, distance, time, calories burned, altitude, climb and descent)

For school use something like this would be great.

But if you’re like me, you’ve invested in technology already and don’t have an opportunity to re-invest, then making do with what you’ve got can be just as effective.

I created the graph below using my iPhone (I know iPhones may not be common amongst students, but who knows what the future may hold?) and an app called Runkeeper Pro, and my very dated Garmin Forerunner 50 (which only records HR data). I think it is a very presentable graph that I could use in class, or ask my students to create themselves.

I now have speed, elevation and heart rate all on the one graph. To create the image, I used the internet, the Runkeeper site, the Garmin Connect site and software installed on the DER laptops

Here’s how I did it.

1. Recorded an activity on my Forerunner 50 HRM. Upload the Forerunner data to Garmin Connect (you’ll need an account, but it’s free) using the ANT connector. Log into Garmin Connect, view the HRM graph, snip it using the Snipper tool in Windows 7 and save it as a JPEG.
2. After completing the activity with Runkeeper Pro running, save the activity. The data is then uploaded to the Runkeeper site (you’ll need an account to access your data)
3. Log into Runkeeper, view the activity graph, snip it using the Snipper tool in Windows 7 and save it as a JPEG
4. Using Photoshop, layer one graph on top of the other, making one about 65% transparent so that you can see them on top of each other. There are plenty of tutorials out there on how to do this.
5. Save the final result as a JPEG.

Kids at school could do the image manipulation, analyse the data and then upload a final report (including the graph) as a PDF to Moodle, BlogED or in any other paperless way you care to mention.

I know that handheld GPS units will record speed, distance and elevation but they may be beyond the budget of a PE faculty to buy more than 1 or 2 .  If you can purchase, make sure they can move the data to a PC before you buy, like this one, or this one

If you know of a way that records speed, distance & elevation via GPS and can be uploaded to a PC, other than using an iPhone or a handheld GPS, please let me know.

For me it was great to know I could do it with what I had and without having to beg for a new device (at home or at school!)

Moodle, Glogster and Runkeeper

This week I’ve played with a few things that might come in handy as far as student engagement goes in the next few months.
As the roll out date for our DER laptops draws nearer (11 days and counting), I tried some things that I can lead my faculty through as simple but quality engagement resources.
Glogster is something I’d heard about in many professional learning (PL) sessions, but never really explored. Setting up an education account with enough room (200 friends) for present and future students, I launched into my first Glog. Using this as a bench mark, I started my Year 10 Outdoor Recreation class on a PIP (Personal Interest Project), using Glogster as the medium for producing their work. They genuinely seemed interested and engaged in the set task. We’ll see how it goes in the future weeks!
Thanks to MrRobbo, I’ve started playing with Run Keeper, an iPhone app that records an exercise session, then uploads it to you online account. Whilst the opportunity for kids to contribute will initially be low (not many, if any, have iPhones), I can definitely see the use for the final product that I produce to be used as a stimulus for analysis. Who knows, kids might get iPhones for Christmas and then the whole landscape will change.
On a more egocentric note, apparently my work with our Moodle team at school has resulted in me being given the opportunity to share my experience at a Regional level in the next few weeks. I’m a bit excited about that – because it is a chance for me to be granted the respect I’ve so waited so long for (LOL). No – I am genuinely excited because I can’t really remember the last time I’ve been asked to contribute my knowledge on a work related issue that will help others with something that I have a genuine passion for. I’m pretty jazzed about that!

Video of the week – one of my favourite songs at the moment.