How Can We Locate Specific Places on Earth



	How Can We Locate Specific Places on Earth? Cindy Fry, Sandy Kelnhofer, Barbara Quintasket Paschal Sherman Indian School, Omak, Washington
	Summary Students discover how to use longitude and latitude to locate specific sites on Earth. Grade level Second Time required 60 minutes Materials Washington state maps Colville Reservation map Markers and pencils Satellite image of the Colville Reservation – see Resources Okanogan Salish words for cardinal directions and celestial bodies Internet access Goals By completing this lesson, students will compare old and new ways of locating specific places, discover how latitude and longitude coordinates are used to locate places on Earth, learn about the use of GPS and satellite imagery to locate sites on Earth and develop inquiry process skills. Science standards addressed National Science Standards Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry Science as a human endeavor Understanding about science and technology American Indian Science Standards Observations and understandings of nature and ecological relationships traditionally formed an essential base of knowledge among American Indian cultures Various forms of scientific and technological work currently engaged in by American Indian men and woman and in what ways their fields require the process of problem identification, design and solution Changes in Earth’s surface, weather fluctuations and movements of celestial objects and how they affected historical American Indian community locations, annual migrations, and agricultural and ceremonial cycles Teacher tips See Resources for web sites on mapping. There are incredible sites that offer great aerial photo, satellite images and maps of anywhere in the world. Allow time for kids to explore while you facilitate. To obtain the Longitude and Latitude anywhere in the USA, access the US Census Bureau web site at http://www.census.gov/cgi-bin/gazetteer, and enter the zip code. Arrange a fieldtrip with tribal GIS personnel to significant cultural sites on the reservation. Ask them to demonstrate the use of the GPS to students. Background information In early times it was very important to know the directions. In addition to using the Sun for an eastern/western point of reference and black moss on trees for a northern point of reference, Okanogan people in early days used landforms to help them navigate. They also drew on rocks and cliffs. These petroglyphs and pictographs were symbolic in nature, using pictures and symbols to give directions to important hunting and camping sites. Many of these ancient pictures still in exist today. At night the Okanogan used stars to navigate. The North Star was very important in navigation. Its name in Salish literally means “to accompany”. It is at the tail end of the Little Dipper and is seen as a sort of mascot. The Big Dipper’s Okanogan name literally means “grizzly bear, sky”. The story is that there were three sisters and four brothers, who were all grizzly bears. They were going hunting. The three sisters make up the handle and the four brothers make up the dipper. Procedure Engagement Invite an elder to talk with students about traditional Okanogan versus contemporary means of determining directions. Ask the guest to review Okanogan names for directions and constellations with the students, and to tell a star story. Ask students to brainstorm ideas of how people all over the world navigate to specific places. Exploration Working in small groups, have students look at a large map and discover for themselves the lines and numbers. Have students share their discoveries and then model for the class how to use latitude and longitude. Provide opportunities for students to practice using latitude and longitude. Place maps on the floor. Group students in teams of four. Write the longitude and latitude of a specific site on the board. Have student teams compete to see who can find the corresponding landmark first. Keep scores on the board. Explanation Facilitate a discussion comparing the old way of finding a location using landforms and the “new way” of using longitude and latitude. Discuss pros and cons of each technique. Talk about the use of global positioning systems to determine locations. Show students a GPS unit and picture of a satellite. Ask them to predict some of the uses of satellite images. Elaboration Access the Earth View web site and encourage students to view specific sites on Earth from space by entering latitude and longitude, or by choosing from a list of cities. Have students view and interpret the satellite image of the Colville Reservation, especially locating cultural sites. Take a fieldtrip to visit the sites with Tribal GPS personnel. Ask them to demonstrate the use of the GPS to students and to talk about how the tribe uses GIS to map the reservation. Evaluation Ask students to draw a picture of how their home would look from above. Have them write one reason why they might need an aerial view of their home. Ask students to make a list of five cities, listing them only by latitude and longitude. Have students trade papers and find the five cities. Follow up activities Students can look at aerial photos of Earth using the TerraServer web site. Students can enter the longitude and latitude to view aerial photos then pan and zoom north, south, east, or west, to their street by looking for landmarks. If coordinates are not available, they can enter their street address. The address for Paschal Sherman Indian School is 25 Omak Lake Road. The final site is http://terraserver.homeadvisor.msn.com/addressimage.aspx?t=1&s=10&alon=- 119.50050587&alat=48.394969506174&w=1&ref=A%7cOmak+Lake+Rd%2 c+Omak%2c+WA+98841&Lon=-119.4482748169&Lat=48.374545069 Read the book And Still the Turtle Watched, which is about a rock carved into a turtle by a man from the Delaware tribe. The story emphasizes stewardship of Earth, and preservation of cultural sites. There is also a Reading Rainbow episode that features this book. Resources Books MacGill-Callahan, S. & Moser, B. (1991). And still the turtle watched. Dial Books. Web sites Native American Indian Resources – U.S. Indian Tribes by State Map page http://www.kstrom.net/isk/maps/tribesbystate.html TerraServer – Allows students to view aerial photos of Earth by entering latitude/longitude, place name or address http://terraserver-usa.com Earthview – Satellite images from around the world http://www.fourmilab.ch/earthview/vlatlon.html US Census Bureau longitude and latitude finder http://www.census.gov/cgi-bin/gazetteer Satellite image of the Colville Reservation http://yoda.cec.umt.edu/sid/bin/show_newjava.plx?image=colville.sid&client= Native_Lands&section=Colville%20Reservation&title=Native%20Lands