1. Teaching Orienteering (Making Orienteering Fun, Not an Exercise in Geometry) By Jim Wolfe, President WPOC

2. Two Approaches Orienteering Orient the Map Do Terrain Association Pay Attention to the Land and the Map Use bearings and pace counting as a last resort (not for beginners) Treasure Hunt Mentality Land Navigation Take a Bearing Pace Count Adjust for Declination Pay Attention to the Compass Surveyor’s Mentality

3. Skill Stages Beginner: Orienting the Map and Learning Terrain Association – Today’s Focus Intermediate: Taking a Bearing and Measuring Distance – Lots of online tutorials Advanced: Choosing Between Routes – Best learned by experience and comparison (Optional) Being Competitive A definite mistake to try mixing these all together for a beginner

4. Use a Real Orienteering Map

5. NOT any Available Topographic Map

6. Map Colors – Presented in Order Black – Man-made features and rock features Yellow – Open areas (no trees or with trees shown individually); 4 variations White and Green – Forest: white is runnable, green in shades (darker = thicker) Blue – Water features Brown – Contour lines - explain spacing and effect of crossing; elevation features

7. Legend Organization Note grouping by color to facilitate look-up International standard for nearly all symbols used Does not include symbols for features that are not present in mapped area May include local symbols at mapper’s discretion Map also has a scale and a statement about the direction of Magnetic North

8. Example Legend

9. Point out Features

10. Orienteering Formats Cross Country Numbered circles connected with lines Must go to circles (controls) in numeric sequence (1, 2, 3, … ) Timed like a race; fastest to visit controls and reach finish wins Interval starts Score Disconnected numbered circles Visit controls in any order Time limit specified Controls assigned values Person who accumulates most value by control visits within time limit wins Lateness penalties Interval or mass start

11. Beginner’s Cross Country Course

12. Beginner’s Score Course

13. What an Orienteer Does Determine the Control to go to Read the Control Description for Destination Go to the Control Location Verify the Control Code Record having been there (Manual or Electronic) Repeat above steps until Finish or Time is Up

14. Read the Control Description Beginner Descriptions are in English and may show the International Symbols as well Advanced Courses show only International Symbols Description tells the orienteer what feature to look for

15. Orienting the Map Compass Magnetic NorthMap Magnetic North

16. Orienting the Map (2) Place compass on map so that any map north line can be seen through the compass body Best if center of compass is exactly on a north line Turn the map until the compass north and the map north agree Use a relatively flat surface to do all this; the ground usually works well Once oriented, the map shows the direction things are in real life

17. Compass on the Map so North Line is Visible

18. Oriented Map

19. Deciding Which Way to Go With the map oriented, say, “If we are here and we want to go there (pointing to two places on the map), which way do we go?” Do not accept a cardinal direction, e.g. Southeast Do not accept a bearing, e.g. 135 degrees Require a response the involves pointing with a finger – next steps show how to get this

20. From Start to Control #1

21. Using Your Index Finger Form a fist with index finger pointing out Place knuckle on “here” and use index to point to “there”

22. Going There Next 4 slides Pick up your index finger and face in the direction it is pointing Keep the map oriented Look on map for handrails (paths, edge of fields, streams, fences, etc.) to use that go roughly in the direction you want to go Follow handrails doing Terrain Association to know where you are and how far you have come

23. After Turning to Face Destination

24. Keeping the Map Oriented After the map is oriented, do not turn it so the top is up Hold map so the two norths agree even if the map is upside down – most information on a map can be understood sideways or upside down To use the oriented map to go somewhere, move your body relative to the map, keeping the norths in agreement

25. See What to Expect Look for features on the map to help you get to the destination See the road, the path, the field go be passed on way to control #1 Reread the description (SW path junction) Make sure you know the control code (121)

26. Teaching Terrain Association ( Matching what the map shows and what the land shows) Demonstrate with a running commentary Point out features that can be seen and match them to their representation on the map Choose a mapped feature not far away, go toward it and recognize the feature when you see it in real life Show using the thumb to keep track of where you are

27. International Symbols

28. Teaching Description Symbols Columns L to R: A, B, C, D, …Steps Understand the columns: A control #, B control code, D main feature description Emphasize that most symbols resemble the way the feature is drawn on the map: boulder, path, spring, fence, small depression, etc. Cover unique terminology: reentrant, cairn, copse, etc.

29. Why Teach Beginners This Way? By using a detailed map that shows “everything” they can learn to keep track of where they are (not feel lost) They gain confidence in themselves and view visiting the controls like a treasure hunt, i.e. fun It is easier for them to make the transition to dealing with maps without as much detail, rather than starting with little detail and going to very detailed Orienteering becomes an adventure, not a mathematical task

30. Why This Way? (2) They will accept the additional knowledge of taking a bearing and pace counting (taught after mastering this instruction) as an enhancement to what they already know, rather than the only way to get there The use of symbolic descriptions becomes a “secret code” that most people don’t know They can be weaned from orienteering maps to USGS and other maps so they feel comfortable in finding their way around anywhere They may be successful enough to be competitive

31. Getting Help with Orienteering By Jim Wolfe, President WPOC

32. What are BSA Orienteering Needs? Provide for orienteering requirements of 1 st Class scouts Provide for orienteering merit badge requirements Volunteer or very low cost help with meeting these requirements Cheap, fun, family-friendly activities for scouts to engage in

33. Who has the O Expertise? Orienteering clubs (about 70 in the USA) Associate clubs/event organizers Teachers of orienteering college courses Survival trainers Adventure race trainers ROTC/JROTC land navigation instructors Education specialists at various parks

34. Why Contact Orienteering Clubs? Nearly all are 501 (C)(3) non-profits Tradition of volunteerism Providing free beginner instruction at O events is standard practice Some clubs also provide more advanced instruction, although less frequently Many clubs offer free or low-cost workshops on request from other organizations

35. What can BSA leaders do? Take their troops to club-sponsored orienteering events 1.To meet a requirement 2.For fun Ask a club to provide a workshop for their troops – may be free Ask a club to use one or more of their maps for practice or to meet a requirement – may be free, maps are normally copyrighted

36. What BSA leaders should NOT do Ask clubs to provide a free event for a jamboree or other large gathering of scouts Insist that club instructors teach everything in the BSA orienteering requirements – orienteers do NOT measure the height of trees Ask club instructors to teach only land navigation elements Undermine club events and instruction by telling their troops “This is not the scout way of orienteering.”

37. Events/Workshops Cost Money For any scout event/workshop, club members will normally donate their time and effort A lot of work involved: designing courses, preparing materials, instruction, putting out and retrieving controls, producing results For small groups, the club may be willing to foot the bill for materials and volunteer expenses; they are less willing for large groups (because of higher costs) Clubs do not try to make money from a scout event/workshop; but they do operate on a shoestring budget

38. Other Possibilities for BSA Leaders Permanent Courses: many clubs have established permanent orienteering courses in parks that they have mapped; maps and instructions are often downloadable or available at the park for free Troop Competitions, a large scouts-only event in which troops or individual scouts compete for awards; this would not be free; examples by DVOA and NEOOC

39. Quid Pro Quo The stated mission of most orienteering clubs is to offer orienteering opportunities and promote the sport of orienteering Clubs can look on offering scout workshops as an orienteering promotion provided the workshops result in increased participation in the sport Clubs want you to bring your scouts back to future events, not just to the one they used to gain the rank of 1 st class

40. Contacts Western PA Orienteering Club www.wpoc.org 814 255-6606 JLWolfe@atlanticbb.net Orienteering USA – national organization orienteeringusa.org “Nearby” clubs in York, Delaware Valley, Washington DC, Cleveland, Rochester, Buffalo