Resources and Links

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Geography Education

  • This is an efficient compilation of the usual geo-trivial information about each state (capitals, state bird, largest cities, even outline map).
  • The Arizona Social Studies Standard.
  • The home page of the Barbara Petchenik Children's map competition. There are links to example maps, teacher's page, and general project information.
  • Diane Godfrey shares resources used to conduct an AzGA GeoSpatial field workshop on 2/15/2014 with teachers, which can be adapted to use with students.
  • A site that has wonderful case studies of geographic knowledge.
  • Established by a joint resolution of the U.S. Congress in 1987, Geography Awareness Week (GAW) is observed the third week in November every year. GAW promotes what geography is, why it is important, and the relevance of a geographic education in preparing citizens to understand and debate pressing social and environmental issues and problems. This year’s celebration is November 12-18, marking the 30th birthday of what has become an important tradition in our discipline.
    National Geographic’s Network of Alliances for Geographic Education met in Washington DC and designated “The Geography of Civil Rights Movements” as a featured theme for the 2017 Awareness Week. The American Association of Geographers (AAG), the National Council for Geographic Education (NCGE), the American Geographical Society (AGS), and the Canadian Association of Geographers (CAG) have endorsed this focus on civil rights.
  • The National Geography Standards
    Eighteen Standards the Geographically Informed Person Knows and Understands
     
    The Geography Standards Framework consists of two levels. At the first level, the subject matter of geography is divided into six essential elements. By essential we mean that each piece is central and necessary; we must look at the world in this way. By element we mean that each piece is a building block for the whole. At the second level, each essential element contains a number of geography standards, and each geography standard contains a set of related ideas and approaches to the subject matter of geography.
    The World in Spatial Terms
    1. How to use maps and other geographic representations, tools, and technologies to acquire, process, and report information.
    2. How to use mental maps to organize information about people, places, and environments.
    3. How to analyze the spatial organization of people, places, and environments on Earth's surface.
    Places and Regions
    4. The physical and human characteristics of places.
    5. That people create regions to interpret Earth's complexity.
    6. How culture and experience influence people's perception of places and regions.
    Physical Systems7. The physical processes that shape the patterns of Earth's surface.
    8. The characteristics and spatial distribution of ecosystems on Earth's surface.
    Human Systems9. The characteristics, distribution, and migration of human populations on Earth's surface.
    10. The characteristics, distributions, and complexity of Earth's cultural mosaics.
    11. The patterns and networks of economic interdependence on Earth's surface.
    12. The process, patterns, and functions of human settlement.
    13. How forces of cooperation and conflict among people influence the division and control of Earth's surface.
    Environment and Society14. How human actions modify the physical environment.
    15. How physical systems affect human systems.
    16. The changes that occur in the meaning, use, distribution, and importance of resources.
    The Uses of Geography
    17. How to apply geography to interpret the past.
    18. To apply geography to interpret the present and plan for the future.
    Source: National Council for Geographic Education (NCGE)
  • Purchase the complete National Geography standards Geography for Life from NCGE.
  • GeoSense is an online, one-two player geography based game. You compete against an online opponent to place a city on a world/continent map as quickly and accurately as you can.
  • Tired of the same old projects and reports?  Ready to try something new?  Some links to several Web 2.0 tools that work well for a variety of learning objectives in social studies.  
  • A great site for teachers and students interested in ecosystems, biomes, and habitats. The site includes hands-on activities, information on conservation, preservation and endangered species

  • Free ArcGIS Online School Account -- US K12 schools can request a free account for instruction.
  • Mission Geography is curriculum support materials that link the content, skills, and perspectives of Geography for Life: The National Geography Standards with the missions, research, and science of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

  • The 2010 NAEP assessment in geography was administered to students throughout the United States from January through March. Results of the assessment will be released in 2011.
  • A java animation that changes scale by powers of 10, zooming in from a universe perpsective towards smaller and smaller areas. Good for teaching powers to ten and scale concepts.
  • The Canada Centre for Mapping and Earth Observation (formerly Canada Centre for Remote Sensing) is pleased to offer this tutorial on remote sensing technology and its applications. This interactive module is intended as an overview at a senior high school or early university level and touches on physics, environmental sciences, mathematics, computer sciences and geography.
    For teachers and students there are additional details and suggestions for using the tutorial.
  • The goal of the project is to visit each of the latitude and longitude integer degree intersections in the world, and to take pictures at each location. The pictures and stories will then be posted here.
  • You select or de-select map layers to print online your own maps related to the Census, Forest Service, and environmental maps. The National Atlas includes products and services designed to stimulate children and adults to visualize and understand complex relationships between environments, places, and people. It contributes to our knowledge of the environmental, resource, demographic, economic, social, political, and historical dimensions of American life.

  • Educators United to Support Geographic Literacy.

    The Network of Alliances is a grassroots organization dedicated to supporting geographic education. Alliances are partnerships between university faculty and K-12 educators. These state based organizations connect educators, provide world-class professional development and promote educational innovation at the state and local levels. Since 1986, National Geographic and the Alliances have worked to catalyze geographic education reform across the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico.
    This website is considered the Alliance Network "portal."  You will find information about the Network and be able to move between state Alliances and the National Geographic site for educators.  
  • The studies presented in What Works are not isolated cases but represent a large body of practice in geography education. These studies illustrate one or more of the following key components of high-quality geography education: a strong focus on geography content; potential for replication and scaling up; a strong evaluation component that measures the effectiveness of the program; the use of technology; demonstration of usefulness of geography for jobs and careers; explicit involvement of women and minorities.

Database

  • AGIC is an organization established by the Governor (AEO. No89-24) to guide the development and management of GIS in Arizona.

  • NASAs regional center is at the Lunar and Planetary Laboratory at the University of Arizona. The facility houses a collection of hundreds of thousands of planetary images and mission information in a variety of formats. The majority of these images are non-copyrighted.
  • This site has GIS and map information for AZ, and other relevant information.
  • A great source of information on the geography of different countries of the world.
  • Colorado Geography High School Lessons

  • answers geographically-related questions, providing maps, weather reports, and factual information.
  • Current and general information about earthquakes. A great starting place for those interested in searching for information about earthquakes.

  • Official Site.
  • This website is a source of demographic information. It shows the most recent figures in population, historical numbers, interesting statistics like average age, fertility rate, population density, gender and migration. 

  • This EPA site called "Index of Water Indicators" assesses watershed health, toxic releases, rish advisories and superfund sites within a particular watershed. Use this site to find environmental information within a watershed.

Maps

  • Arizona State Map of Legislative Districts from the 2010 redistricting.
  • U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Web page for the water resources of Arizona; this is a direct link to all kinds of water-resource information.  Arizona's rivers and streams, drought conditions,  groundwater, water quality, flooding and more.
  • Site to find topographic maps of the Grand Canyon
  • Green Maps is a site devoted to giving us a fresh perspective of our cities and towns. They help us locate eco-resources such as bike lanes, farmers markets and wildlife habitats, along with cultural sites that make our hometowns special. Green Maps encourage us to discover new ways to experience the local urban ecology. Every city has many wonderful places where you can get involved creating a more natural and enjoyable lifestyle. Find out ways to put the places and things you like about the local environment "on the map." Visit the page of Youth Green Maps and see some of the varied and beautiful Green Maps that have already been designed and completed around the world. The Activity Guide can be used by young people, in school or after-school, and older community members can take part on these Mapmaking teams, as well.
  • The Hargrett Rare Book & Manuscript Library at the University of Georgia Libraries maintains a collection of more than 1,000 historic maps spanning nearly 500 years, from the sixteenth century through the early twentieth century. Although not limited to a single geographic subject, the collection heavily emphasizes Georgia as colony and state, along with its surrounding region.

    This database serves as a finding aid for Hargrett's map holdings and provides digital versions of most maps.

  • One of the greatest compilations of map links
  • One of the largest and best organized collection of on-line maps. This is a must site to visit if you are looking for historic maps.
  • This site connects current events with maps.
  • "Topozone", now part of Trails.com, allows you to see topographic maps from anywhere in the United States. The maps can be viewed and printed at different scales. You can view the edge region of two adjacent topographic sheets. Students can use the site for their exercises related to viewing their home, planning backpacking trips, and more.

Physical Geography Info

  • This site has short, small "movies" of different climates of the earth. Start with the animation of Air Temperature, and watch Earth's climate change before your eyes.

  • How to make a Recirculating Stream Table on the Cheap (Less than $50)
  • This site is a center for NASA's educational materials for educators & students.  Here you can find a live stream from the space station, lessons & activities, NASA TV, opportunities to borrow artifacts and much more.

  • This is one-stop shopping you are looking for one place to get images of the earth, ranging from info on time zones, to climate, to views of the ancient world, to future predictions, to volcanoes, and much much more.

  • One of the very best places to obtain NASA images.

Geography Standards and Geographic Literacy

  • Before the National Standards were developed, the Geographic Education National Implementation Project (1987) developed Five Geography Themes for teaching geography. This University of South Florida site give a comprehensive overview.

  • The Association of American Geographers (AAG) provides explanations of what geographers do, where they might work and extensive career resources to answer questions and guide career planning.
  • "Path Toward World Literacy - A Scope and Sequence in Geographic Education K-12” single page poster in pdf format.

  • There are Eighteen National Geography Standards and they are organized into the Six Essential Elements for Geography.

  • This presentation by Gale Olp Ekiss was created for educating the general public and educators on a geographer's definition of geography. It provides a short practice in spatial analysis and reasons why studying geography is important. PowerPoint with written narration (2021)

  • Produced by the Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, this booklet explains why geographic knowledge, skills and technology provide a means to understand, comprehend and anticipate changes in the world. Topics: Technology & the Internet, Culture Diversity, Environment and Society, Globalization, Climate Change, Energy, Business & Industry, Natural and Technological Hazards and Employment.

Grants/Fellowships

  • Toyota International Teacher Program sends U.S. teachers abroad to experience foreign cultures and increase global understanding. Established in 1998 and administered by the Institute of International Education, the program now sends teachers to Japan, Galapagos Islands and Costa Rica.
  • This booklet show how geographers see the world and how valuable that perspective is; why modern geography is important for strategies to maintain an international leadership in economic, political, and moral matters in a complex and rapidly changing world.