A New Take On An Old Concept — Using Google Earth For Current Event Assignments

Submitted by: Emily Pierce
Collaborators: Greg Metcalf
School: Deep Run High School

Summary

U.S. Government students will locate and analyze current event articles and communicate their results in Google Earth placemarks. Students will create the Google Earth placemarks and use them as visual aids when presenting their article to the class. The placemarks will be shared with members of the class who will open them in Google Earth. Sharing placemarks allows other participants to read the source articles and the analysis thereby learning more about current issues in government while reviewing and acquiring additional geography skills. Sharing placemarks prior to the presentations will encourage class members to participate in follow-up discussions of the articles and issues related to U. S. government and to the entire world.

TIPC Ratings

This lesson is developing in terms of research and information fluency as students will apply search techniques to locate appropriate contemporary news articles and will analyze such articles for accuracy and applicability while determining the articles’ relationships to the content of the U.S. Government course.

This lesson is developing as students will use a specified digital tool to present their analyses of current event articles with their classmates. The presenters will assume the role of instructors while classmates assume the roles of active participants in numerous discussions about how current events can be viewed as to their relationships to fundamental concepts in U.S. Government.

This lesson is approaching in terms of critical thinking as students will analyze the article, present their findings to their class, and respond to higher order questions from both their classmates and teachers following the presentations. Students will use the placemark feature of Google Earth to communicate their analyses thus allowing other students to learn from and inquire about the presenters’ understandings.

This lesson is developing as students will use technology to present an analysis of their choice of current event articles. Students will create original products that summarize their understandings and analyze how real world events relate to concepts they are learning in school.