Monday, December 22, 2008

Journal # 7: Google Earth

Google Earth is basically a virtual globe that lets you view images, maps, and 3D buildings from satellites. You can even find and explore some galaxies in the sky! From the discussions I read on Classroom 2.0, it seems that it is great for students and can definitely be used in the classroom. One lady even said it is good for math lessons by creating paths and measuring them with a ruler. They were using math skills and didn't even realize it! This could also be used for problem solving strategies. That same lady said students could pretend they were in the Coast Guards and had to conduct a rescue mission...how fun! The news has even mentioned that Google Earth is used in people's lives! In one case, someone was missing and they used it to find the missing person! In addition, Google Earth uses longitude and latitude, which is a great concept for kids to learn and play with and this is the perfect tool for that! Although, like most programs, there are glitches and some problems with it, but nothing that can't be resolved or worked around. An example one teacher used the program for was rates and wildfires, which could be hard for students to wrap their heads around, so a program like this would definitely help them!
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3 comments:

  1. ErinDecember 22, 2008 at 10:23 PM

    I agree! Google Earth is such a great interactive program. Geography can be such an abstract concept and hard for kids to remember where different countries etc are. This gives them a great visual as well as so many other tools that go along with it.

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  2. Lori PalmerDecember 26, 2008 at 4:39 PM

    I think that you make good points. Google earth can be fascinating to students and a good tool to use in the classroom. Take them to Inda, Africa......their house!

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  3. Lindsay DuringerJanuary 5, 2009 at 11:33 AM

    This is an interesting tool. Google Earth is a fun tool, but I hadn't thought of how it could be used in the classroom. It sounds like some teachers have used great imagination with this program, and I could see how I could use it in my classroom- to teach longitude and latitude!

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