Instructify

Sure, Google Maps is cool, but without basic knowledge of how maps work, it’s not an effective tool for students. The ability to use and understand maps is a skill, and it’s one that improves with exposure to maps. Two of my favorite online collections are Alabama Maps from the University of Alabama and the Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection from the University of Texas.

Alabama Maps encompasses a contemporary map collection as well as a historical map archive. The contemporary maps are large and easy to use, and are available “free of charge by anyone for any purpose.” They include unlabeled base maps that could easily be turned into classroom games or quizzes. The historical map collection is categorized by region, and includes maps related to special topics like the Civil War, railroads, and National Forests. The cross-curricular possibilities are endless: if you’re an English teacher teaching Huck Finn, why not show your students an 1836 map of the Mississippi River?

The Perry-Castañeda Collection is similarly extensive and easily navigable. Most of the maps are in the public domain and, hence, copyright-free. The front page is updated to align with current events – an easy one-stop search for teachers looking to tie geography to the news: current offerings include Afghanistan, China, Tibet, Iraq, Kosovo, Sudan, and maps showing results of presidential primary elections.

So before your students go off geocaching willy-nilly, make sure they know which way is north. -EMILY JACK

Alabama Maps
Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection

Related Stuff:
That’s a State, Right?
Great Literature, Now With Road Maps

Photo credit: Dunechaser on flickr