When I went to the Mapping tool on Classroom 2.0, there was only one thread asking a question. I was very disappointed at first, but clicking on that one thread led to a whole series of threads recommending various sites for mapping. Web mapping, as defined by Wikipedia, is dealing with technological issues. Web cartography deals with the designing and generating of maps and their theoretical aspects. Web GIS has a similar emphasis on the exploring aspects of geodata. Wikipedia states that there is a blurry line between Web GIS and what we commonly think of as web mapping.
Within the mapping thread on Classroom 2.0, several mapping sites were recommended by educators for projects with students. The most common, Google Earth, seems the most advanced. There is also Wikimapia.com and Communitywalk.com. I played around with all three of them and really had some fun. It sounds like Google Earth has the most to offer at this time in creating maps, 3D capability, adding text, pictures and even videos to your maps. A couple of the educators wrote they used Google Earth for projects that included tracking typhoons, population predictions, contagious disease outbreaks and pinpointing longitude and latitude coordinates. Wikimapia and Community Walk both have the ability to create maps and explore new places, too. Wikimapia also has the ability to add text and upload pictures and videos. It would be easy to plan a series of fun and interesting projects to use mapping in a social studies classroom.
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Helene,
It was very interesting to read about mapping. This was the first time I had heard about such a program. When I have some time I am going to try some of the sites you recommended out and see how they are. Thank you for the information.
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