Tell It, Map It--MapTales

One of my favorite sources of good websites and applications is Larry Ferlazzo, an educator who maintains Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day...  In one of his final posts of 2013 he provides his readers with The Best Web 2.0 Applications For Education In ____.    This year he included a neat little application for making digital stories using maps, MapTales.

In the introductory paragraph on the left side they list plenty of ideas to get you started using this free application.  To begin all you need to do is select the green Create Your Tale button.  A new window captioned Let's Get Started appears.

You are asked to give your tale a name.  Naming the author and a description of the story are optional but if this is being used to practice writing or to document something I would encourage users to complete these items.  When finished click on the green Move on to Part One.

At the next screen you are advised to keep adding parts until your story is told.  For each part you enter in a title, search for the place it happened, complete a description (optional) and add a date (optional).  Sometimes I found the search function to be a little slow but it might have been my connection at the time.  What worked for me was to enter in the term, click on the search icon, wait and click on it again.  The correct map would appear.  You do have the option of zooming in and out on the map.  The first two images show the entire page.  My completed part three is the third image.

With all necessary parts added, I selected the I'm done editing button.  At the next screen you are asked to save the URL link (bookmark the page) for future editing purposes.  At this page you can edit your initial title and description.  All your parts are listed with the ability to delete them or add another. If you click on any of the parts, you are taken to the page where they were originally added for purposes of editing.  An HTML embed code is provided.  

Here is my first MapTales titled Biographic Journeys with Jeanette Winter.

What I find really appealing about this application is the no registration feature.  This service can be used by younger students who wish to tell a story combining the use of maps.  In my book, that's a huge plus.

Technology has given us advances in connectivity that are truly amazing.  I think it's important for our students (and us) to know where the people, animals and places mentioned in our reading are placed on maps.  It provides perspective.

I am in complete agreement with Larry Ferlazzo in recommending this application.  Once you have listed or outlined the shape of your story it can be completed with ease in under thirty minutes.  Be sure to give MapTales a try in your classroom.  Let me know in the comments below how you use it.

Plot And Play

Having had a lifelong fascination with maps, advances in technology have only heightened the circumstances for bringing a more participatory aspect to the way we chart our world.  In 2007 Google Maps launched Street View.  Street View allows users to view locations from a 360-degree perspective. Today there are images from all seven continents within this application.

In May of 2013 a game using Google Maps Street View was released.  GeoGuessr presents to a user five randomly selected views (1) from around the world with the ability to zoom in and out and rotate the scene. You need to speculate on the location using a map (2).

You can move around on the world map using your mouse to drag and the plus and minus signs to narrow the location to get an exact guess.  When you think you might be in the right spot, click on the location.  When you do this, a place marker pops up.  

Click the red Make guess bar.  An image, new window, appears on the screen showing your guess (1) and the correct spot on the map (2).  You are given points based on the difference.  The fewer the points, the better. (I missed the Texas flag on the porch.) 

When that screen is closed your next view for guessing appears.  You can quickly see your score and in which round you are.  You can share your game at any one of hundreds of social networks, email it or print it.  

You can challenge yourself  by limiting your time.  This challenge can be played by others.  When you click Create challenge! a URL link appears at the bottom so others will have the same five locations.

GeoGuessr got even better when Richard Byrne, educator, speaker and blogger at Free Technology for Teachers,  wrote a post on June 3, 2013 about the ability for users to create their own GeoGuessr game using an application called GeoSettr.  At the GeoSettr page you can enter in your five rounds using the map on the left (1) and the view on the right (2).  To begin move the tiny yellow Lego-like man around to your first point on the map.

Just as you do when playing GeoGuessr you can zoom in and out and drag the Lego-like man to any location.  If there is not a Street View for an area he goes to "stand" above the plus and minus signs on the left and the Street View on the right goes blank.  When you have him correctly positioned,  click the Set round 1 button above the map.  

As you move to the next round, rest assured while you are moving the Lego-like man to any spot, you can manipulate the view on the right to get exactly where you need to go.  When you complete the fifth round clicking on the button to add it, a small window pops up advising you of the URL link for your challenge.

I would advise copying and pasting the link into a note so you can retrieve it at another time or so others can try your GeoGuessr.  Here is the link to my GeoGuessr created using GeoSettr.  As soon as you click OK the option to make a New challenge appears.  

The progression of Google Maps, Street View, to GeoGuessr to Geosettr, is a real plus for educators. Teachers can create Geoguessr games to coordinate with specific units or students could use this application to enhance a project or presentation. I highly recommend Geosettr for it's interactive learning potential.  I am now off to explore the Welcome to the New Google Maps pages.  Make sure you follow all my embedded links to discover the possibilities for using these applications and services in your classroom.

Strolling Across The Map---Mosey

In three days the American Association of School Librarians committee for the Best Websites for Teaching and Learning will announce their selections for 2013.  Truthfully, I can hardly wait to view and use their new list.  I rely on their expertise in finding the best the web has to offer.

Last week I tried one of the thirty-two web 2.0 applications listed on Larry Ferlazzo's The Best Web 2.0 Applications For Education In 2013---So Far called Buncee.  It's best described as a tool for creating slides incorporating multi-media such as images, videos, text, drawings and audio.  My review and step-by-step walk-through is embedded in the name above.

Another of the applications referenced in this list is Mosey.  According to the site:

Our Service allows users to create, view, and explore “Moseys,” which are custom, curated adventures for various locations around the world. Through Moseys, users can share with others their thoughts, notes, experiences, recommendations, reviews, instructions, and other information to piece together an adventure in a given place or location for other users to enjoy.

In making a Mosey you can document a single day or an entire trip.  What you do create is meant to be shared with others.  This application is web-based; meaning it will work on all devices.  You have the ability to search other Mosey creations.  Basic use is free for those 13 years or older.

After clicking the Sign Up button you are taken to a new window where you can register using your Facebook account or create a separate account.  You begin by entering in your email address and a password.  You continue by creating a profile with your first and last name and city. (A welcoming email is sent to your inbox immediately.)

At the next screen you are invited to update your profile by adding a picture, user handle, short bio and gender.  You can decide what to add or not.  In the upper right-hand corner are options for use.  The first is Explore.  

You can search by Moseys, Places or People.  On the right-hand side of this page is a search box for entering in keywords, a list of popular categories (Arts+Culture, Outdoors, Shopping, Scenic, Drinks, Foodie, Nightlife) along with filters, Most Recent, Most Popular, Featured and Friends.  I scrolled through nearly 200 of the previously created Moseys looking for any which might be inappropriate for users 13 years or older.  At this time I did not see any based upon the title of the Moseys.  Most featured scenic vistas and food.



Next I selected the Create button.  Initially you are asked if Mosey can access your Geolocation via your computer.  Thinking of this application in the educational setting (erring on the side of caution) I refused.  This working screen appears to be an overlay on the original screen. I entered in my location (place name or zip code) and clicked the Get Started button.

At the following window you are asked to search for a place in your location or add a custom place. On the right is a map pinpointing your place of origin.  When you wish to add a photo it comes from images already in Moseys.  At this point I am unable to add my own images. (There must be a way of doing this.)

You can keep adding places by entering new names into the search bar.  When you have all the spots you wish to include, select the Next Step button. The following screen is for creating your cover image and title.

The lines for entering in a title and description are available.  But the Select a cover image was not. After choosing Next Step you are asked to pick as many appropriate categories that fit your Mosey and estimate the cost for this Mosey.  At the third step you can share this Mosey via email or on Facebook or choose to make it private.  You can still go back to edit the last three steps before clicking the Finish button.

Upon clicking the Finish button an email is sent to you announcing the completion of your Mosey.  The site has filled in images for each of your selected spots.  Your screen will look like the image below.  Beneath this are each of the designated places with images (if available) for each.  At this time I have still not been able to determine how to replace the stock (public) images with my own.  Even choosing the edit button does not remedy this.

Above each specific location is an icon of a walking person.  When you click on that a new window opens giving you pictorial and written walking directions to get to that place from your current location. This is a huge benefit.

When you choose the Share button next to the Edit button at the top of your Mosey, you can post it to your Facebook wall, send a message via Facebook, send a tweet on Twitter or post it on Pinterest.  At this time there is no Help section other then sending in a message via the Feedback tab or using email contacts listed at the bottom of the page.  I have sent in an inquiry as to using your own images. UPDATE:  I have received a reply.  They are working on you using your own images as well as being able to embed your Mosey using HTML code.  Great news!

I can see an advantage to using this in the classroom in a variety of situations.  In our curriculum we study our community at the earlier grade levels.  It would be a great tool for the older students to use to create important places in the town for the younger students to explore on a walking trip.  Both would benefit from the experience.  It could be used to document the exploration of other geographical places in the study of history or current events.  Students can plan the trip of their dreams or a trip their favorite character from a book might want to take.  For those books read where characters travel, this tool could track that trip.

Mosey is exceedingly user-friendly.  The ease of use is exemplary.  I will update this post as soon as I receive a reply as to the images.  Hopefully I have missed the obvious.  I believe Mosey has a place in the educational setting.  

This is the link to my created Mosey, My Favorite Places in Charlevoix.

Interacting With Graphics and Maps

Google recently announced that they are opening their Map Maker up to the United States.  In their own words: Google Map Maker allows you to add and update geographic information for millions of users to see in Google Maps and Google Earth. With Google Map Maker, you can:

• Add places of interest such as your local restaurants, cafes, schools and more.
• Edit and update details for existing places.
• Help avid hikers by mapping trails, be it for a casual walk or an adventurous trip!
• Get driving directions and also help in making them more accurate.

• See what your peers are mapping in specific areas.

A very detailed Getting Started Guide explains toolbar features, how to navigate in Map Maker, different views on Map Maker, specific instructions for street view on Map Maker, labs features, your Map Maker profile, Map Maker settings, markers and information windows, getting the links to places, how to add points of interest, mapping in your language, and system requirements.  There is also a comprehensive list of countries in Google maps. 


Users can sign in using their Google or Gmail account; one and the same I believe. Once a user has entered in the new information it will be confirmed before it appears on the maps. I attempted to show the driveway used to get to the County Recycling bins.  Time will tell if this becomes a permanent fixture on the map.

Believe it or not there are Mapping Party Kits available.  After checking the terms of service there does not appear to be an age limitation. 



Thanks to Richard Byrne for this info on his blog post of April 19, 2011 at Free Technology for Teachers.



A blog called NewsLab has posted two videos which instruct users in the creation of interactive graphics.  Although the NewsLab blog is designed to be read and used by journalists these two web sites offer ways to manipulate data that can be used in the classroom and for personal use as well.

One of the sites, Many Eyes is an experiment brought to users by IBM Research and the IBM Cognos Software Group.  Registration is required for this by entering in an email address and password.  Users are invited to explore visualizations, data sets, leave comments and visit topic centers.  Participation is in the form of creating a visualization in just three easy steps:  choose a data set, choose a visualization style, customize and publish.  A quick start guide is available as are visualization types and data format and styles.  The seven visualization styles are:  analyze a text, compare a set of values, see relationships among data points, see parts of a whole, see the world and track rises and falls over time.

This is a very simple visual that I created using one of the styles under compare a set of values.







The second instructional video at NewLab extends the use of Google Maps.  It is by far simpler to use and for that reason might be more advantageous for students at the lower levels or those with fewer online computer skills.  Using Google Docs create a two column spreadsheet.  In the first column put the address.  Name the place of interest in the second column.  Click on the Insert tab at the top to change the data into a widget that can be embedded into a place of the users' choice.  Below is a simple map that I designed showing my favorite places to get books.



This is the link to the video that very easily describes how to do this.
How To Make A Google Map

Thanks to Larry Ferlazzo for a post earlier this month at his blog, Larry Ferlazzo's Web Sites of the Day about these two videos.