Google Earth Celebrates Black History Month

Do you ever read that small print below the search field on your Google search page? I don’t always pay attention to it, but today it caught my eye. It invited me (and you) to, “Take a journey through Black History with Google Earth“

Black History Month, also known as African-American History Month in the U.S., is an annual observance in Canada, Ireland, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States. It began as a way for remembering important people and events in the history of the African diaspora. It is celebrated annually in the United States and Canada in February, as well as in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Republic of Ireland in October.

Wikipedia

Have you ever spent time on “Google Earth“? It’s actually very cool! Claiming to be “the world’s most detailed globe“, it allows you to travel the world from the comfort of your own web-linked device.

Are you interested in learning about African American contributions in history and wish you could see important sites, but just can’t get out of the house or classroom? Well, here’s a virtual tool that can help you reach the farthest corners of the globe from your chair. You could even think about using Google Earth in your classroom to take your students on journeys that they wouldn’t have otherwise.

In February, Google Earth has a special niche carved out to explore Black History in the United States with content curated by the New York Public Library’s Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture and Howard University in Washington DC.

On the site you can search the map to see dozens of map pins around the United States . Each pin takes you to a significant event in African American History. Clearly not all inclusive, but some great highlights. Click on a pin and zoom in to find the stories and locations.

The Black History Journey Topics include:

• Advocacy
• Business
• Dance
• Education
• Film & TV
• Technology

Here’s just one of the stories from the Black History Month Journeys, with a bit more detail added too.

Benjamin Banneker 1731 to 1806

“Amazingly, there was a time when America didn’t have a clock. It was Benjamin Banneker — a self-taught son of slaves — that crafted the continent’s first clock after examining a pocket watch. A true polymath, Banneker wrote books and accurately predicted astronomical events, but his greatest moment may have come when Thomas Jefferson asked him to help build America’s new capital.

In 1790 French-born American engineer and designer Pierre Charles L’Enfant was chosen to plan Washington DC, the new capital city. Surveyor Andrew Ellicott surveyed the 10-square-mile (26-square-km) territory with the assistance of Benjamin Banneker, a self-educated free black man.

After the lead architect stormed off, Banneker recreated his plans — from memory! READ MORE from Google Earth and HERE’s a more detailed biography as well.

You can learn more about the celebration of Black History Month here too.

So take a dive into Google Earth’s Journeys. It’s easy to see that its an awesome tool for both personal and educational uses! Here’s a quick tip sheet on how to use Google Earth for education and more great information from National Geographic about using the tool in your classroom, no matter what age you teach.

Have you ever explored with Google Earth? If so, how do you use it? What ideas do you have that others might not know about? Please share them below.

Tags: Benjamin Banneker, Educational Tools, educational travel, featured, Thomas Jefferson, Washington DC

Category: United States, Travel Inspiration