Afternoon Tech Rotation Part 1: Google Maps, Earth and SketchUp

Google Maps, Earth and SketchUp presented by Thomas Cooper

Tools that Talk to Each Other
How could you use these tools?
Google Apps- preschoolers learning their address and then find it on Google Earth
Lower School - Research explorers and then posted text into Google Maps
Middle School - Bought 30 GPS units from Garmin. Plotted out a scavenger hunt at the zoo (3 different paths) and students
used the tool to calculate mathematical questions- shortest route/ route that does not make you repeat any site visited

Google Maps
Go to My Maps and then click on Measuring Tool

Google Earth Pro
Email geec@google .com If you are interested in a Google Pro grant.
Back and forth questions and answers to verify that you actually need
Handles GPS data and also contains MovieMaker which enables you to animate tours
Measuring Tools provide the polygon and circle additionally to measure the distance and area. Using the polygon, you can draw any path that you want and determine distance which will enable you to compare alternate paths.

Collaboration and Google Earth
How can we use Google Earth to post collaborative tools online?
To write code on Google Earth look for the KLM Handbook on Amazon.

SketchUp
Major undate has just been launched- SketchUp version 7
When in Rome...Teach!
Competition just launched for teachers to build curriculum about this layer- Deadline February 2009
Check it out at Google.com/educators
Turn on 3D layers
Go to layers and then Gallery in layers
Look for Ancient Rome 3D
You can view 3D images of what Ancient Rome looked like


Visit Geo Education Home
Training teachers in astronomy using Google Sky
Also working on the National Geographic Bee