Do you Google Earth? By now almost everybody with a computer either has or will use this amazing geographic information system (GIS). Whether for directions to an unfamiliar place, finding the closest pizza parlor, buying a new home or planning your next travel adventure, there are as many useful and interesting uses for Google Earth as there are people using it. And it's free!If do not already have Google Earth downloaded and installed on your computer, please do so now. While it is free and easy, it is also a large program and may take a while to download, depending on your Internet service.
While you're online using this powerful GIS program, you'll find it runs more quickly and smoothly if your Internet service is up to speed. And because it's large, it can also slow down your computer if you have too many applications open at the same time you are using Google Earth.
If you're new to Google Earth, spend some time learning how to navigate using the onscreen controls. You can fly, zoom in and out, go submarine and even view the landscape in 3D. It's fun and fascinating for students and adults. But be careful. You might lose track of time exploring the world.
If you run into any problems using Google earth, or if you want tips on some of its myriad features, YouTube is a great place to find tutorials, pointers, examples and insights.
ENGAGE
Where on Earth were you born?
Where on Earth were you born?
Mountains, valleys or plains; rivers, lakes or deserts - we all live in and rely on landscapes shaped by tremendous forces. It’s likely your parents had good reasons for living where you were born, and some of those reasons probably relate to landscape one way or another.
So, here's a question: Where on Earth were you born? Not the hospital, house or even the town, necessarily. But where on Earth were you born? What landscape? What physical environment? Where on Google Earth were you born?
So, here's a question: Where on Earth were you born? Not the hospital, house or even the town, necessarily. But where on Earth were you born? What landscape? What physical environment? Where on Google Earth were you born?
EXPLORE
Google Earth
For this activity, use Google Earth to visit and represent the landscape of your birth, or some other personally significant place. You can fly directly there if you know how and where. Or you can type the location in the search box in the Google Earth menu, and the program will take you there automatically.
When you get there, spend some time looking around. Experiment with perspective by trying different elevations and directions. What do you see? How would you describe the landscape?
EXPLAIN
Special Assignment
Add a description of the landscape of your birthplace to your first blog post describing a special place.
- Landscape is a general term that can mean many things to many people. Most adults are familiar with basic terms: mountain, valley, plain, canyon, plateau, lake, river, ocean. Other, more specific, terms add precision and depth to descriptions. For example, flood plain instead of plain. Or, fjord instead of channel. Please feel free to use terms comfortable or familiar to you, but use of specific geographic, scientific terminology whenever possible is always appropriate.
- Describe any evident forces shaping the landscape. (geologic faults, volcanoes, rivers, glaciers, wind, ocean, etc.)
EXTEND
- Include a Google Earth screenshot or two that provide the best perspectives on the landscape you are describing
EVALUATE
- Describe how Google Earth or other global information systems changes the way you and your students look at our world.
