Google Earth Virtual Tour

I decided to do my virtual tour on borders between states and countries.

Standard:

3rd Grade

Standard 1: Students will understand how geography influences community location and development.
Objective 1: Determine the relationships between human settlement and geography.
c. Compare the shapes and purposes of natural and human-made boundaries of cities, counties and states.

Location	Activity Description	Google Earth Content
1. Bering Strait North America and Asia border	Don't Alaska and Asia look close together? It seems like you can swim from one continent to the other! Use the ruler tool to measure the distance from the edge of Alaska to the edge of Asia. How many miles apart are they? Did that surprise you? Why or why not?	Turn on borders and terrain. Use the ruler tool.
2. Mississippi River- Mississippi and Arkansas Border	Notice the border line (the gray line) and the actual river. They differ! Follow the eastern edge of the Arkansas border line and notice how it changes from the river path. This is because the Mississippi River is constantly moving. Change the date on Google Earth using the "historical imagery" tool. Can you see how the river shifts over the years? Why do you think this is? Source: "Arkansas State Boundaries" on http://encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=2546	Turn on borders and terrain. Use the time slider tool.
3. Swiss Alps Italy and Switzerland border	Take a visit to the Swiss Alps! Why do you think this mountain range is the border? Drag along the mountain range and notice how long it is! You can use the ruler tool to measure the length of the mountain range.	Terrain, border layers. Ruler tool
4. Four Corners, USA Arizona, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico	At this border, we can be in 4 places at once! The white platform you see is where the big X is. Find the place where the 4 states meet. Does that match up with where the white platform is? Why do you think this is? Zoom in on the 4 corners Center. How big is it? What do you notice about it? Does it seem like fun? View the different pictures of the monument.	Turn on border and terrain.

I thought learning about borders, natural and man-made, would be a lot more fun and informational when using Google Earth. First off, I think borders can be kind of an abstract idea, because in real life they are all around us, but not always clearly marked or noticeable. Google Earth gives a birds eye view, and students can see the borders and how they really do separate different places. Many of these borders are also famous landmarks, so you get a two for one deal on this tour. Students can see the place for how it really looks and it's like they are taking a field trip.