Virtual World and Google Earth Synopsis: This teacher’s guide provides descriptions and recommendations of what the virtual world. It is focused around Second Life and Google Earth and examines the unique qualities of both. After reading this booklet, one will find the beneficial qualities of both resources and decide which one can be utilized effectively in the classroom. In a generation of technologically advanced children, teachers must have the resources to enrich their learning with these tools. Date: 03/10/12 Sara Lopez
LopezSecondLifeGoogleEarthBookv2
Mar 29, 2016
Synopsis: This teacher’s guide provides descriptions and recommendations of what the virtual world. It is focused around Second Life and Google Earth and examines the unique qualities of both. After reading this booklet, one will find the beneficial qualities of both resources and decide which one can be utilized effectively in the classroom. In a generation of technologically advanced children, teachers must have the resources to enrich their learning with these tools. Sara Lopez
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Virtual World and Google Earth
Synopsis: This teacher’s guide provides descriptions and recommendations of what the virtual world. It is focused around Second Life and Google Earth and examines the unique qualities of both. After reading this booklet, one will find the beneficial qualities of both resources and decide which one can be utilized effectively in the classroom. In a generation of technologically advanced children, teachers must have the resources to enrich their learning with these tools.
Date: 03/10/12
S a r a L o p e z
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Second Life You become the ava ta r. . . Second Life is a virtual world that you can enter through your avatar. You have the ability to create a fictional figure who can teleport to both real and fiction-based places. Second Life has a wide variety of educational purposes. Teachers can explore areas around the globe with their students without leaving the four walls of their classroom. While many of the aspects of Second Life include realistic images, they still have an animated quality that does not quite compare to Google Earth.
How You Can Use I t : The following is a list of ways Second Life can be integrat-ed into classroom instruction:
Virtually tour places like The Statue of Liberty, The Colosseum, Mount Rushmore, and the Oval Office.
Click on images to gain information about the sur-rounding areas. For example, at the Eiffel Tower site in France, you can learn about the artists whose paintings are posted around the city of Paris.
Teleport to the other side of the globe within seconds.
Share your findings with your avatar friends.
Take your students to places you would nev-er be able to go on a field trip!
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Google Earth Trave l ac ross t he g lobe i n seconds . . . Google Earth is an amazing tool that allows you to travel the world with the click of a mouse. It works similarly to google.com in that you can simply type in your destination in the search box. Google Earth will send you to your desired destination and display an updated, 3-D image of it. The images are incredibly realistic allowing one to see the details of the archi-tecture. The zoom-in and zoom-out features allow you to also visit the surrounding areas. Google Earth simulates looking out the window of an airplane.
How You Can Use I t : The following is a list of ways Google Earth can be inte-grated into classroom instruction:
Type in your destination into the search box and ar-rive in seconds.
Click on images and links to gain information about the surrounding areas. For example, the Mount Rush-more monument includes photos and links that take you to others sites to gain further information.
View landscapes from an areal view.
Save your places in an organized fashion.
Take your students to places you would never be able to go on a field trip!
Places to Visit in Second Life
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The Eiffel Tower Here my avatar is touring the Eifel Tower. It is lit up as if it is nighttime. On the tour, you can click on French paintings and retrieve information on the Artist. I really like this destination. It’s very realistic and informative. http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Paris%20Eiffel/38/176/25
The Alamo This is a virtual tour of the Alamo in Texas. Being able to click on the objects and seeing the information is useful. This would be a useful tool to use on a virtual field trip with a class. I liked how the historical information was displayed upon walking in.
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/UTArlington%20III/158/72/23
The Statue of Liberty
This is a dome featuring photographs of the construction of The Statue of Liberty. The photographs appear in a vintage style similar
to what would be seen in a museum. There is no ability to click on the photographs to retrieve information on them, and the pictures were limited. However, it can give students a real sense of what the attraction looks like.
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Le%20Dome/40/14/21
The Acropolis The Acropolis in Greece is located in Second Life. The architecture of the buildings is very realistic and displays Grecian culture. I like how it shows the ancient history of the area. There are places to click on for more
information to about other buildings such as the Parthenon. This has come a long way from the “ancient” computer game Recess in Greece. http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/GREECE/194/68/59
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Places to Visit in Second Life
The Holocaust Museum The Holocaust Museum in Second Life allows you to enter a world that resembles the period in history. When teaching a unit on the Holocaust, a teacher can take her students here to get a realistic feel for what it was like. This would also be useful when teaching a Holocaust based novel without illustrations such as Number the Stars. http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/US%20Holocaust%20Museum1/78/60/26
The Oval Office This is a virtual rendition of the Oval Office. My avatar is sitting in the president’s chair. I’m able to get a view of the office from the perspective of the president. This is a great resource for teachers to use since they cannot physically tour in the real office in D.C. with their students. http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Sialimonus/225/236/68
Mount Rushmore
Mount Rushmore is difficult to render. Second Life includes one that can pass for an accurate depiction. It did not offer much
information on the construction. It is very limited and does not portray the structure realistically. However, if you are looking for a quick way to present it to a class, this will do.
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Le%20Dome/190/142/86
Old New York In Old New York, your avatar can explore realistic sites in New York City. The graffiti and posters are realistic looking. The grounds also give a similar feel to New York City. Students would be able to take a virtual
tour of the city as opposed to the suburbs. http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Staten%20Island/119/96/21
Places to Visit in Second Life
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Big Ben In London’s virtual world, one can visit Big Ben and the Bell Tower. Students can read information on the famous structure. http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Knightsbridge/205/216/93
St. Louis Gateway Arch
Here we are looking at the St. Louis Gateway Arch! Rather than looking at photographs of the structure, students can tour the area around.
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/St%20Louis%20Island/166/125/31
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The Statue of Liberty The Statue of Liberty in Google Earth depicts the statue and the surrounding grounds. The water view allows you to visualize the surrounding places to visit on Ellis Island. There are a lot of links to resources related to the site. If students have never seen the statue they can take a tour through Google Earth.
Westminster Palace Westminster Palace in London shows a beautiful view of Big Ben. The details of the architecture are incredibly vivid. You can click on nearby places that are adjacent to the palace. Additional photographs and information are provided through links and images.
Mount Rushmore
Mount Rushmore in Google Earth is very useful. The monument is more realistic looking. You can also click on photos for additional information on the site. I feel
that this would be more useful for students as it is more representative of a tourist attraction.
The St. Louis Gateway Arch The St. Louis Gateway Arch is viewable in Google Earth. This is an up-close image of the structure with the surrounding area. I would use this to explore the grounds around
the arch and get a better idea of this breathtaking structure.
Places to Visit in Google Earth
Places to Visit in Google Earth
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The Empire State Building The Empire State Building in New York City is a major attractions. Many students have never been to New York City. This image shows the true layout of a busy, crowded city. This can be used in a social studies unit to compare and contrast the lifestyles of people who live in a city as opposed to those who live in a rural or suburban area.
The White House The White House can be viewed from Google Earth. It is difficult for tourists to get this close to the building or even past the gate. This would allow students to get an up-close view of the president’s home. The gardens surrounding The White House give a true depiction of what it actually looks like.
The Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower is a monumental site. It is also an attraction for art and French culture. French teachers can use Google Earth to
virtually visit the Eiffel Tower. The site also provides links to other information about the Eiffel tower for further research.
The Acropolis The Acropolis in Greece gives a real-life image in present day Greece while preserving the ancient aspects of the city. You can see the ruins of the city surrounded by the
modern buildings. For a class studying Ancient Greece and architecture, this would be useful. In addition to the intense details, links and other photographs are available to do further exploring.
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Places to Visit in Google Earth
The Colosseum The Colosseum in Rome is shown here from Google Earth. We can get a vivid depiction of the structure and how it was used in Ancient Rome. Archeology classes can certainly use this tool to explore the inner components of the building. Though Rome is far advanced, this shows how the ancient components are still present in the city.
The Auschwitz Concentration Camps
The Auschwitz Concentration Camps are visible in Good Earth. Students often wonder about what they looked like. There are several units in literacy and social studies
that this can be used for. Rather than show photographs in a textbook, a teacher can bring her students on a tour of the area. I feel that this would provide a more authentic experience for students who are curious about Auschwitz.
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Editor’s Rank
Second Life The Statue of Liberty
The Alamo
The Acropolis
The Eiffel Tower
Mount Rushmore
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Editor’s Rank Second Life
The Oval Office
Old New York
The Holocaust Museum
St. Louis Gateway Arch
Big Ben
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Editor’s Rank
Google Earth Mount Rushmore
Westminster Palace
St. Louis Gateway Arch
The Statue of Liberty
The Eiffel Tower
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Editor’s Rank Google Earth
The White House
The Acropolis
The Empire State Building
Auschwitz Concentration Camps
The Colosseum
EDST6305 Production II Dr. Martinelli Spring 2012
Sara Lopez
Seton Hall University
The Virtual World in Your Hands