TerraClues

When teaching students about the world around them, Web 2.0 tools such as Google Earth have revolutionized geography instruction, offering interactive and meaningful virtual experiences.  However, to my knowledge, Google Earth lacks a mechanism for providing self-paced instruction, requiring a teacher to provide structure for a lesson involving this powerful tool.  It also does little to connect students' understanding of geography to historical significance.  TerraClues is a great Web 2.0 resource that offers greater flexibility and, like Google Earth, has the capacity to expose students to the geography of the world.

TerraClues guides students in a GoogleMaps scavenger hunt in which the user must decipher clues in order to reach the correct destination.  By following a series of these clues, the user will arrive at the final destination, having gained a better understanding of where the places are located, as well as how the locations are related to a central topic.  This is a powerful tool for teachers who are striving to raise their students' awareness of geography while teaching students a content-related lesson.  For instance, while teaching students about the arrival of colonists to America, a teacher could create a TerraClues scavenger hunt following the journey of those colonists.  This would raise the students' awareness of the geographic origins of the colonists in England and their journey to America where they ultimately settled.  Another great benefit of this tool is the opportunity to provide differentiated, self-paced learning.  Leveled TerraClues scavenger hunts could ensure that learning is scaffolded according to the students' prior knowledge.