[LM_NET] HIT: Google Earth ideas

[Nancy Kershner <nkershner@AMHERST.K12.VA.US>]

Here are the ideas I got on lessons for using Google Earth.  If you need any 
general directions on using Google Earth, you can get them from the Google 
Earth site.  If I get any more, I'll post another hit later.
First idea:
Purpose: Students will be creating an endangered species “fly-by” 
presentation.  
Prior documentation
Text of research
URL of any Google Image which must end in .jpg (600x400 or smaller works 
best)
URL of any additional hyperlinks
Saved to student space on server
Bibiography of sources (text and image)
* When students have completed and teacher has approved the report w/URL of 
image, they are to Save the document to the appropriate class folder on the 
S:Drive.
Directions for Google Earth  
Log in as pvstudent
Show students a sample of final fly-by project
Students open and minimize research document from the S:Drive
Students open Google Earth 
Let students explore for 5 minutes
Delete all information in the Search and Places windows (right click and 
delete)
In Layers window (bottom left corner) uncheck - Primary Database to clear 
locations and then check “Borders and Labels,” and “Terrain.”
Click Tools tab heading. Go to Options. Click on the Touring tab. Check the 
box “Show balloon when tour is paused.”  Then change the number in front 
of Tour pause to 6.0 . Click apply. Click OK.
Locate the place (habitat) of the animal
In Google Earth find the continent/country/habitat where the animal lives by 
entering in the “Fly To” (top left corner) or zooming into the place on 
the world
Demonstrate how to zoom
Click and drag map to move while zooming in
Click Push-Pin Tool (Place Marker) and it will appear on map
You can drag the pin to your selected location and then you are ready to add 
information about the endangered species
Add Text
In the name box (untitled placemark) add the name of the endangered species
Go back to the original document that was minimized and highlight just the 
text. Do not include the web address of the image. Copy the highlighted 
text.
Go back to Google Earth and paste the text into the description window.
Enter <br> <br> between paragraph breaks. This code will place line spacing 
between paragraphs and images.
Add Image
In the top of  description window, hit the return key twice and enter the 
code
<img src=”web address here”>
2.   Go back to the research document. Copy the URL of the Google Image.
3.   Go back to Google Earth description window and paste the image URL 
inside the 
      quotation marks in place of “web address here”
4. Click OK and test by double clicking on the Push pin.
To resize image; right click placemark (push pin), go to “Properties”.
In the description window edit URL address of image size by changing the 
width and height.  Example: 
<http://www.pantherkut.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/giant-panda-adult.JPG” 
width=200 height=300>
                                                                             
       # space      #space
Save Project to S:Drive
1.   Right click on Push Pin representing the animal.  Pull down to “Save 
place as”
Navigate to designated project folder on the S:Drive 
Click Save
Teacher directions for creating the final class Fly-By
Right click on the My Places folder under Places move mouse to “add” 
then “folder.”
Name the folder (name by periods)  and enter description.
Open appropriate folder on S:drive where students saved their work.  
Hold shift key down and click on the top and the bottom document to 
highlight. Click open.
Drag to folder created in step 2 of Google Earth.
Mark the folder to save (make sure nothing else is marked.) Highlight that 
folder. Pull file to save place as and navigate to appropriate folder and 
save.  Or right click on folder (in “Places”) and choose to “Save 
Places as”
Second idea:
As for your request, what if you had the kids first look at their home, 
their neighborhood, and the closest, largest metro area to where they live 
and compare it to the neighborhoods that now exist where the wonders are? 
Just a thought...or refine it to comparing their neighborhood to the 
neighborhood at their chosen Wonder site?

Third idea:
 We did something with maps.google.com with my elementary students. The
introduction to it was looking up the school address and then our
addresses. We then typed in both addresses for directions and compared
it to how we really got to school... did we take the same/different
roads, etc.

Fourth idea:
Have you looked at http://www.googlelittrips.org/ ?  Lots of ideas there.


Nancy Kershner
Library Media Specialist
Amelon Elementary School
Madison Heights, VA
nkershner@amherst.k12.va.us

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