ALEX Resources

Title: Mapping the Travels of Paul Bunyan Through Alabama, Too!
Description: During this lesson, students will recount a Paul Bunyan tall tale, an entertaining way to identify bodies of water and landforms in the United States. Although Paul Bunyan's Tales did not focus on Alabama, students will create their own narratives after viewing photographs of major mountain ranges, rivers, and lakes throughout Alabama (ACOS 3.2). This lesson will utilize older maps of the United States and Alabama, which are used to remind us that this folk tale was handed down orally until the early 1900s when a newspaper printed several accounts of the tall tale. This lesson was created in partnership with the Alabama Department of Archives and History.
Standard(s):
[TC2] (3-5) 10: Use digital environments to collaborate and communicate.

Title: Oh, The Geographic Features We Can Explore!  Using QR Codes and Google Slides 
Description: In this lesson, students will work collaboratively to create a presentation showcasing the various geographic features around the world and use the appropriate academic vocabulary.  Students will present their group slide to the class.  Students will independently write a compare and contrast paragraph about two geographic features.  
Standard(s):
[TC2] (3-5) 2: Use various technology applications, including word processing and multimedia software.

Title: Exploring the world with P.W. Cracker!
Description: This lesson can be completed in a whole group or small group setting. After reading the book “P.W. Cracker Sees the World,” the students will complete an inquiry project that connects social studies/geography to what they read in their story.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 2: Locate the continents on a map or globe

Title: Jet, Set, Go! Travel Google Earth in Ben's Dream
Description: This lesson uses the picture book by Chris Van Allsburg Ben’s Dream with Google Earth to highlight ten major landmarks of the world. After reading and discussing Ben’s Dream, students "travel" to each location using the free software Google Earth. Students will then be put into small groups by the teacher to research one specific landmark using the tools available on Google Earth (i.e., snapshots, Wikipedia links, etc.). Using their research skills, students locate these famous landmarks, conduct further research on them, and share that information with the class.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 2: Locate the continents on a map or globe

Title: Where am I?
Description: This lesson teaches one of the geography themes called location. Students will learn about absolute location and relative location as they search the globe. This lesson plan is made possible through the ALEX and the U.S. National Park Service Partnership.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 2: Locate the continents on a map or globe

Title: Amazing Alabama
Description: Follow along with our roving reporters as they travel Alabama from the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains to the shores of the Gulf Coast.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 8: Identify geographic links of land regions, river systems, and interstate highways between Alabama and other states. (Alabama)

Title: Where Am I?
Description: During this lesson students explore the 50 states through the Internet. Students discover important facts and information by navigating the World Wide Web.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] USS5 (5) 3: Distinguish differences among major American Indian cultures in North America according to geographic region, natural resources, community organization, economy, and belief systems.

Title: State Jeopardy - How Much Do You Know About My State?
Description: This lesson is a distance learning collaborative project involving another school. Each school will do research on the other school's state and be able to answer questions about that state posed by the other school. Students learn not only about another state, but about their own in formulating questions to stump their opponents.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] USS5 (5) 13: Describe social and economic influences on United States' expansion prior to World War I.

Title: A Look at Our Natural Environment
Description: During this lesson students will have the opportunity to research, analyze, and collect data on how the natural environment influenced the Native Americans long ago, and how it still influences us today. Using information gathered from the Internet, each student group will create a multimedia presentation and share it with the class.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] ALA (4) 1: Compare historical and current economic, political, and geographic information about Alabama on thematic maps, including weather and climate, physical-relief, waterway, transportation, political, economic development, land-use, and population maps.

Title: Antarctic Adventures!
Description: This month-long ongoing lesson will give the students opportunities to learn more about Antarctica. They will investigate and research specific information and use it to create a notebook and an information table.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 2: Locate the continents on a map or globe

Title: The Earth's Changing Surface
Description: During this unit, students will identify the various landforms found on the earth's surface. Also, students will describe how these landforms are created and changed by the natural forces within the earth and on its surface, as well as the unnatural impact of humans. Finally, students will create a slide presentation to display this information.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 3: Describe ways the environment is affected by humans in Alabama and the world. (Alabama)

Title: Forces That Change the Land
Description: Students will use websites and other resources to find information about the following landforms: mountains, canyons, and valleys.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 2: Locate the continents on a map or globe

Title: Martian Real Estate: A Good Investment?
Description: This lesson, from Xpeditions, has students compare the landscapes of Mars and Earth and explore why the two planets are so different. They conclude by writing letters convincing fictitious family friends that it is probably not a good idea to invest in Martian real estate.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 4: Relate population dispersion to geographic, economic, and historic changes in Alabama and the world. (Alabama)

Title: Make State Maps With MapMachine
Description: In this Xpeditions lesson, students compare and contrast their state with another one using observations they make from National Geographic's MapMachine. They look at their own state's maps as the teacher creates them for the class, and they then make their own maps of another state of their choice. They list their observations of the two states maps and then write paragraphs comparing and contrasting what they have seen.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 2: Locate the continents on a map or globe

Title: What Is Geography?
Description: This Xpeditions lesson introduces students to the five themes of geography. Students work in groups to analyze a Web site to locate information about a particular country or region, then create presentations showing how the geographic concepts described in the themes can be used to help solve environmental problems.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 2: Locate the continents on a map or globe

Title: Toot and Puddle: Exploring New Places
Description: In this Xpeditions student activity, students plan a trip in which they explore a new place. They first figure out where they want to go, how to get there and what to pack. They then decide what they d like to do once they arrive.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 2: Locate the continents on a map or globe

Title: From Boomtown to Ghost Town
Description: In this Xpeditions lesson, students discuss how a specific economic activity in a region can facilitate the creation of towns, which often turn into ghost towns if the economic activity ends. They create posters or booklets showing the '' '' life cycle'' '' of a mining town, from before its foundation to its status as ghost town.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] USS5 (5) 13: Describe social and economic influences on United States' expansion prior to World War I.

Title: Using Photography to Help Save the Oceans
Description: In this lesson, from Xpeditions, students learn about the importance of ocean conservation. They think about how photography can help humans understand the impact they are having on the oceans by looking at the photography of David Doubilet. They look at animals that are endangered because of human behavior and choose one to study in depth. Finally, students draw the animal they chose and describe why it is in peril and how it can be protected.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 3: Describe ways the environment is affected by humans in Alabama and the world. (Alabama)

Title: Tell a Migration Story...with Maps
Description: In this Xpeditions student activity, students share information about migration in their communities by planning and creating migration maps. After learning about mental maps and mapmaking in general, they create their own maps to illustrate how migration has helped to shape their local areas.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] HGEO (9-12) 2: Identify world migration patterns caused by displacement issues.

Title: Expedition to the Poles
Description: In this lesson, from Xpeditions, students pretend they've just returned from a year in the Arctic or Antarctic. They look at Web sites about these regions and expeditions to them and create posters illustrating their experiences. They conclude by writing paragraphs explaining what it would be like to visit the polar region that they did not focus on in this lesson.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] USS5 (5) 2: Identify causes and effects of early migration and settlement of North America.

Title: Uplink Outpost: To the Future Class of...
Description: In this Xpeditions lesson, students use the interactive feature in Xpedition Hall called Uplink Outpost to discover ways to interpret geography in their community. Students create a plan for the future of their community based on geographic factors, and write a class email to the next generation of students.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 9: Identify ways to prepare for natural disasters.

Title: On the Road with Marco Polo: Crossing the Deserts of China
Description: In this lesson, one of a multi-part unit from EDSITEment, students use Internet resources to learn about the Taklimakan Desert. They determine what was (and is) best way to travel from one end of the desert to the other and explore how some of the local inhabitants make a living.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 2: Locate the continents on a map or globe

Title: Wave Heights
Description: In this lesson, from Xpeditions, students learn about the varying heights of ocean waves and what causes the variation. They begin by learning the parts of a wave, and then discuss the meaning of wave height and wavelength in terms of various points of reference. A demonstration sparks discussion about how geography affects wave heights, and allows students to experiment with various forces to create different sized waves. Students use the National Geographic Wave Simulator to experiment with creating different types of waves, and draw waves based on the heights and lengths of familiar structures around the school.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 2: Locate the continents on a map or globe

Title: Locator Booth: Mapping South America
Description: In this lesson, from Xpeditions, students visit the Locator Booth exhibit in National Geographic's Xpedition Hall and consider conditions to find places positions. Students see how human and physical factors define eight South American hot spots. Students learn new geographic terms and use context clues in their reading to decide which map has the information they need to complete an interactive activity.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 2: Locate the continents on a map or globe

Title: Design Your Own Suburb
Description: This lesson, from Xpeditions, asks students to think about their own perceptions of cities and suburbs and to consider the features that exist in a typical urban and suburban area. They also learn about sprawl and some of the problems associated with rapid suburban growth. They conclude by designing their own suburbs.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] USS5 (5) 3: Distinguish differences among major American Indian cultures in North America according to geographic region, natural resources, community organization, economy, and belief systems.

Title: Geography of Pizza
Description: In this lesson, from Xpeditions, students analyze Earth's surface according to the spatial elements of points, lines, and areas, and use a simple map to identify features in terms of spatial elements. This lesson uses a pizza restaurant to introduce these components to students, e.g., the location of a restaurant (point), roads and sidewalks (lines), and the city blocks or the region served by a restaurant (area).
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 8: Identify geographic links of land regions, river systems, and interstate highways between Alabama and other states. (Alabama)

Title: Jimmy Chin's Adventure in Extreme Photography
Description: In this Xpeditions lesson, students explore how culture and experience influence people's perceptions of places and regions. They explore the photography of National Geographic Emerging Explorer Jimmy Chin and discuss how adventure travel differs from regular tourism.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 6: Identify conflicts within and between geographic areas involving use of land, economic competition for scarce resources, opposing political views, boundary disputes, and cultural differences.

Title: Be a Geography Detective
Description: In this Xpeditions lesson, students become geography detectives, learning about geography and the relationship human beings have with the land. Students apply the six essential elements of geography as they make observations and draw conclusions about historical landscapes. They demonstrate their understanding by writing journal entries, sketching landscapes, and making mental maps.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 9: Identify ways to prepare for natural disasters.

Title: What's Happening to the Emperor Penguins?
Description: In this lesson, from Xpeditions, students learn about emperor penguins habitat and behaviors through Web sites such as National Geographic's Creature Feature. Students illustrate a map to show what they have learned, view pictures of icebergs that are affecting penguin colonies, and consider what impacts these icebergs might have on the penguins. Finally, students write paragraphs describing the maps they have illustrated.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 3: Describe ways the environment is affected by humans in Alabama and the world. (Alabama)

Title: Antarctica: A Cold Desert Ecosystem
Description: In this lesson, from Xpeditions, students construct a rough map of Antarctic ecosystems and explore relationships among the creatures that populate them. This lesson can be adapted to focus on other regions, including the one in which you live.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 4: Relate population dispersion to geographic, economic, and historic changes in Alabama and the world. (Alabama)

Title: Folktales and Ecology: Animals and Humans in Cooperation and Conflict
Description: In this unit of three lessons, from EDSITEment, students study relationships between humans and animals in folktales in order to highlight issues concerning ecology and the environment. They explore the ways in which animals and humans help one another and consider the efforts of humans to protect endangered species.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 7: Describe the relationship between locations of resources and patterns of population distribution.

Title: Nomads: Where Boundaries Move
Description: In this Xpeditions lesson, students explore nomadic pastoralism. Focusing on Central Asia, students investigate the way humans have adapted to regions that do not sustain communities through agriculture and the influence this has both on how they live and on how they view the boundaries of their homes.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] USS5 (5) 13: Describe social and economic influences on United States' expansion prior to World War I.

Title: Where I Come From
Description: In this lesson, from EDSITEment, students take research into their heritage a step beyond the construction of a family tree, traveling through cyberspace to find out what's happening in their ancestral homelands today and explore their sense of connection to these places in their past.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] USS5 (5) 10: Describe political, social, and economic events between 1803 and 1860 that led to the expansion of the territory of the United States, including the War of 1812, the Indian Removal Act, the Texas-Mexican War, the Mexican-American War, and the Gold Rush of 1849.

Title: What They Left Behind: Early Multi-National Influences in the United States
Description: The four lessons in this unit, from EDSITEment, are designed to help students make connections between European voyages of discovery, colonial spheres of influence, and various aspects of American culture. They map 18th-century Europe's influence on what is now the U.S., list remnants of European influence that still remain today, and connect marks of European influence with specific explorers.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] USS5 (5) 6: Describe colonial economic life and labor systems in the Americas.

Title: Traces: Historic Archaeology
Description: In this unit of five lessons, from EDSITEment, students recover and analyze artifacts from sites in use from the settlement period to the second half of the 19th century. They look for similarities and differences among the artifacts and the lives they reveal. In conclusion, students look at today's eventual artifacts of the future and consider how we may be viewed.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] USS5 (5) 4: Determine the economic and cultural impact of European exploration during the Age of Discovery upon European society and American Indians.

Title: Global Breakfast
Description: The purpose of this Science NetLinks lesson is to look for evidence of global interdependence in the foods that we eat. Students recognize the fact that many of the foods that they eat, and the ingredients that go into making them, are produced in other countries. They speculate about why certain foods are produced in different regions of the world, and what might happen if the production and/or distribution of these goods was to stop.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 9: Identify ways to prepare for natural disasters.

Title: Comparing the Continents
Description: In this Xpeditions lesson, students examine a map and globe to compare the physical features of Earth's continents. They play the GeoSpy continents game and manipulate an online map to compare the continents climates. Students conclude by writing paragraphs comparing and contrasting two continents.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 4: Relate population dispersion to geographic, economic, and historic changes in Alabama and the world. (Alabama)

Title: How Crowded Are Our States?
Description: In this lesson, from Xpeditions, students combine information from statistics and maps to find out about world and national population characteristics. They determine which countries and states appear to be particularly crowded and which states are sparsely populated. They conclude by discussing what it might be like to live in a very crowded or a very sparsely populated state.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 7: Describe the relationship between locations of resources and patterns of population distribution.

Title: The Water Column: Where Do Ocean Animals Belong?
Description: In this Xpeditions lesson, students learn about three broad ocean habitats--the intertidal zone, the open ocean, and the abyss--and find out about some specific adaptations animals have made in each of these regions. They conduct Internet research and list some of the things they notice about animal adaptations in the ocean. Students conclude by designing games to help other students match species and their adaptations to appropriate parts of the ocean.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 2: Locate the continents on a map or globe

Title: Introducing the Seven Continents
Digital Tool: The Seven Continents Song
Web Address URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqsCWZtZlk4
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 2: Locate the continents on a map or globe
Digital Tool Description: The video identifies and illustrates the seven continents of the world, while introducing their relative location.

Title: Can a Strait Be Crooked?
Description: In 1520, Ferdinand Magellan reached the Pacific Ocean. He didn't get there by sailing in a strait line, though!
Standard(s):
[SS2010] USS5 (5) 4: Determine the economic and cultural impact of European exploration during the Age of Discovery upon European society and American Indians.

Title: Where Is the Tallest Waterfall?
Description: The closest many of us come to a waterfall is our daily shower. The showerhead can't hold a candle to Mother Nature's beauty, though. Let's learn about waterfalls!
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 7: Describe the relationship between locations of resources and patterns of population distribution.

Title: Where Do Diamonds Come From?
Description: If you were born in April, your birthstone is the diamond, which symbolizes innocence. Join us for a trek around the globe in search of this most precious of minerals that can cut glass and melt hearts.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 2: Locate the continents on a map or globe

Title: Real-World Geography: Dr. Malcolm Rohrbough
Description: Profile of historian Malcolm J
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 2: Locate the continents on a map or globe

Title: province
Description: Encyclopedic entry. A province is an area of land that is part of a country, similar to a state or a county. It can also be an area of land under political control by an outside country, similar to a colony.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GEOG (7) 9: Explain how human actions modify the physical environment within and between places, including how human-induced changes affect the environment.

Title: Desert Islands
Description: Article. The Mandrean Archipelago is a series of unique mountaintop habitats.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 2: Locate the continents on a map or globe

Title: National Geographic Education
Description: Cultural, educational, and informational resource for teaching geography, as well as world history.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 2: Locate the continents on a map or globe

Title: The Water Nearby
Description: Do you live near the water? There is probably a body of water closer than you think! In this activity, students will use Google Maps to first find their school, and then locate and learn about the closest body of water to their school. Included in an OurStory module from the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History entitled Life on the Water, this activity is intended to help children and adults enjoy exploring history together through the use of children's literature, everyday objects, and hands-on activities. National Museum of American History
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 7: Describe the relationship between locations of resources and patterns of population distribution.

Title: Kalahari: Where the Lion is King
Description: This student interactive, from an Xpeditions lesson, prompts students to answer questions as they read an article about the Kalahari Xeric Savanna. In the related lesson, students study the biota-or flora and fauna-of the Kalahari Desert, and the importance of the lion s role as predator within this ecosystem.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 7: Describe the relationship between locations of resources and patterns of population distribution.

Title: Family Trip Plan
Description: In this student interactive, from an Xpeditions lesson, students use a print press tool to create a brochure or booklet highlighting a three-week U.S. travel itinerary.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] USS5 (5) 2: Identify causes and effects of early migration and settlement of North America.

Title: World Viewer
Description: This Xpedition Hall interactive allows visitors to view six different kinds of information in spatial terms, distributed on a world map. Click on the right circle in Room I to view this interactive.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GEOG (7) 4: Evaluate spatial patterns and the demographic structure of population on Earth's surface in terms of density, dispersion, growth and mortality rates, natural increase, and doubling time.

Title: Americas MapMaker Kit
Description: MapMaker Kit. Download, print, and assemble maps of North and South America in a variety of sizes.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 2: Locate the continents on a map or globe

Title: Can a Strait Be Crooked?
Description: In 1520, Ferdinand Magellan reached the Pacific Ocean. He didn't get there by sailing in a strait line, though!
Standard(s):
[SS2010] USS5 (5) 4: Determine the economic and cultural impact of European exploration during the Age of Discovery upon European society and American Indians.

Title: Toot and Puddle: Exploring New Places
Description: In this Xpeditions student activity, students plan a trip in which they explore a new place. They first figure out where they want to go, how to get there and what to pack. They then decide what they d like to do once they arrive.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 2: Locate the continents on a map or globe

Title: Tell a Migration Story...with Maps
Description: In this Xpeditions student activity, students share information about migration in their communities by planning and creating migration maps. After learning about mental maps and mapmaking in general, they create their own maps to illustrate how migration has helped to shape their local areas.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] HGEO (9-12) 2: Identify world migration patterns caused by displacement issues.

Title: Major Languages of the Americas
Description: Activity. Students identify major languages spoken in the Americas, map them, and discuss the relationship between the distribution of languages and the colonial history of the countries.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] USS5 (5) 5: Explain the early colonization of North America and reasons for settlement in the Northern, Middle, and Southern colonies, including geographic features, landforms, and differences in climate among the colonies.

Title: Where Is the Tallest Waterfall?
Description: The closest many of us come to a waterfall is our daily shower. The showerhead can't hold a candle to Mother Nature's beauty, though. Let's learn about waterfalls!
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 7: Describe the relationship between locations of resources and patterns of population distribution.

Title: Geographic Groceries
Description: Activity. Students explore the regions of a grocery store to see which foods are grouped together and why.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 8: Identify geographic links of land regions, river systems, and interstate highways between Alabama and other states. (Alabama)

Title: Where Do Diamonds Come From?
Description: If you were born in April, your birthstone is the diamond, which symbolizes innocence. Join us for a trek around the globe in search of this most precious of minerals that can cut glass and melt hearts.
Standard(s):
[SS2010] GHS (3) 2: Locate the continents on a map or globe