Google+Lit+Trips

**Strengths:**

 * When characters go on “road trips,” students can find the places mentioned in the book, mark them in Google Earth, and add supplementary information.
 * Enables users to download ready-made "lit trips” as .KMZ files, which can be opened with Google Earth
 * Teachers and students can submit their own Lit Trip for books they're reading– creating a KMZ file is relatively easy; teachers and students are creating their own virtual literary trips and sharing them with the online community
 * Students and teachers get experience with Google Earth - free “Google Earth Webinar” on front page.
 * Some Lit Trips have geographic information organized by chapter, lesson plans to accompany the books, slide shows of the user-created content, and podcasts of the user-created content (My Brother Sam is Dead).
 * Books are organized by grade level for easy finding.
 * Google Lit Trips site includes an Integration Strategies page
 * Great on-site explanation of how to get the most out of using GLT in your classroom.

**Weaknesses:**

 * ====== Limited scope of books to choose from in the archives, BUT unless the student/class creates the Lit Trip, I’m not sure it’s more meaningful than looking at a traditional 2-D map – it depends on the understanding or commitment of teacher to use the tool meaningfully. ======

**Opportunities:**

 * ====== When reading a book, the teacher can tell her students to be on the look-out for names of places, then at the end of the chapter/book/reading session, the students can plot the points on the map and add supplementary information, such as what happened to the character there or factual information about the place. This makes the text interactive, which increases the likelihood that students will be engaged in reading. ======
 * ====== Also, any Lit Trips that students created may be accepted and used by the Google Lit Trips site, increasing motivation to create something well. ======
 * ====== Google Lit Trips is specifically for plotting the journeys of characters in books, but Google Earth could be used for any subject – for example, students could map out Lewis and Clark’s expedition, the Oregon Trail, the Trail of Tears, and many, many others. ======

**Threats:**

 * ====== As sites are abandoned, the links posted on Google Lit Trips may no longer link to the intended resources. New sites being linked to Lit Trips may steer students toward sites that are unsecured or obscene. Teachers should preview and monitor student's use of this tool. ======


 * Ideas for the Classroom:**
 * Allows users to authentically connect to story characters by visually seeing their travels charted on accurate maps.
 * Allows for students to create their own "Lit Trip" using a particular book of interest
 * Opportunities for collaboration as users work together to research geographical locations
 * Provides authentic internet navigation and product creation practice for students