While thinking about ways to integrate technology into specific lessons, and also integrating TPACK, I think using Google Earth Lit Trips would be a great way to use technology in the classroom. I learned about these last year in my TE 401 class, where we explored the book Fever 1793. Lit trips allow you to take a journey through the setting of a certain book, where you get to see what a certain town or village looks like. Lit trips can also be very helpful to use as an overview or review of a book because at each stop in the trip, you can have students answer questions that pertain to the book.
In regards to TPACK, I think Google Earth Lit Trips are very useful for this model. When you use a lit trip in the classroom, students are able to use what they have learned from the book and apply it while using the lit trip, whether it be answering questions during the trip, identifying certain aspects of the setting of the book, or even making their own trip. You can even make a lit trip to be specific to one city or town mentioned in the book. Google Earth Lit Trips are very versatile, easy to use, and can be used for books at any grade level. I think that I will definitely use this resource in my own classroom!
Check out this video to see an example of a Google Earth Lit Trip for the picture book Make Way For Ducklings!
I chose to explore Google Earth as well this week. I was also in TE 401 last semester and can relate to exactly what you are referring to. Google Earth Lit Trips are a really cool and fun tool to use and I would definitely use them in the future as a teacher.
ReplyDelete