Google Earth

Features

Google Earth is a virtual globe that allows users to explore geographical locations in 3D imagery. It offers features like satellite imagery, street view, historical imagery, and interactive tours. users can view landscapes, explore cities, and learn about places around the world, making it a powerful tool for geographic education and exploration.

Use

Teaching, Simulator

Description of the use in class

directly by the children with the teacher’s supervision

age

Suitable for all K-12 ages

Learning outcomes

Using Google Earth may support students’ understanding about Earth, its shape, the analogy between water and land, the relative size of the continents, etc. Additionally, Google Earth may be used by students at a more focused, zoom-in level, to understand a specific geographical area.

Reviews / Recommendations

One recommendation for using Google Earth in the classroom with children is to create virtual field trips. Select locations relevant to your curriculum, such as famous landmarks, ecosystems, or historical sites. Guide students to explore these places using Google Earth's interactive features like street view and historical imagery. This immersive experience can enrich their understanding of geography, culture, and history while making learning engaging and memorable.

Example of the tool as a good practice

Google Earth may be used by the geography teacher to introduce students to the elements of Earth as seen from space, to understand and conceptualize their relation in size. Thus, the teacher may ask students, while in the classroom, to access the available devices, Google Earth, utilizing the browser, and to explore the application environment by zooming in and out. Additionally, the teacher may ask students to find their area or their house, to understand how “small” we are in comparison to the size of Earth.
As an additional activity, teacher may ask students to find, take a snapshot (print-screen) of the following:
World’s highest mountain peek
World’s longest river
World’s largest desert
World’s largest lake
World’s largest ocean

Inclusion

The use of digital tools, by each student, at his/her own pace, allows for greater inclusiveness. The tool may be used by deaf students.