Explore Place Around The World Through Gez.la

It's no secret I love websites that help you explore the world! And I found another one GEZ.LA

This website is similar to Google Earth or Google Street View, in fact it uses some of the same technology. However the search feature and ability or filter by country or type of place (museum, nature, or historic site) is really neat. 

Create a new blog post in your Spanish Blog Portfolio (or send an email to your teacher), title it the same as this blog post, then complete two of the tasks below.

1. Pick one of the places and describe it in detail. Where is it? What is it? Why is it important? Who made it? When was it created? Why did you pick that place?
2. Which place would you like to visit? Explain your answer.
3. Which place would you not like to visit? Explain your answer. 
4. Compare two of the places with 2 similarities and 2 differences.
5. Do you prefer to visit nature, museums, or historical places? Explain your answer

WindowSwap

There is a really neat website called WindowSwap where you can click and see outside windows from different parts of the world. 

Window in Singapore

Window in United Kingdom

Window in Japan

Window in France

Create a new blog post in your Spanish Blog Portfolio (or send an email to your teacher), title it the same as this blog post, then complete one of the tasks below.

1. Click through 4-5 windows on WindowSwap, take a screen shot of each window. (Just like I did above). Be sure to include the location in the top right of your screen shot.
2. If you don't want to take screen shots, click through 3 windows on WindowSwap and describe each photo in detail. What do you see in the house? Outside the window? Where is the photo taken?
3. Click through 4-5 windows on WindowSwap and list where each window is. Which window would you want to look out the most? Explain your answer. 
4. Submit your window! Read how to do it here. Email the video to your teacher too.

Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?

I've posted a lot of posts about exploring the world through Google Earth. 

Time to play a game exploring the world!

Click here to play Carmen Sandiego The Crown Jewels Caper 

or Carmen Sandiego The Keys to the Kremlin Caper

or Carmen Sandiego Tutankhamun's Mask Caper

Create a new blog post in your Spanish Blog Portfolio (or send an email to your teacher), title it the same as this blog post, play one of the games above, then complete one of the tasks below.

1. Play one of the games and post your score. 
2. What are 3 tips you'd give someone who would play the game next?
3. List 5 things you learned through the game.
4. Play all three and rank the games. Explain your reasoning. 
5. How does this compare to playing the "original" Carmen Sandiego?

United Nations Declaration of Human Rights

I've mentioned the United Nation Sustainable Development Goals, and today I'll talk about the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

In 1948 (over 70 years ago) the United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.  This is a list of 30 rights that every person in the world has. Look over the list below or click here to see a thorough description of each article. 

Create a new blog post in your Spanish Blog Portfolio (or send an email to your teacher), title it the same as this blog post, then complete two of the tasks below.

 

1.     Which 3-5 articles do you think are most important? Explain your answer.

2.     Compare this Declaration of Human Rights to the Declaration of Independence from Britain. What is similar? What is different?

3.     Give an example of how one of these human rights is respected in our community. This could be in the school, the city, the state or our country.  

4.     Give an example of a time when one of these human rights were not respected. What should have happened?

5.     How can you promote/raise awareness of these human rights? Give an example.

6.     How can you defend these human rights? Give an example.

7.     By respecting these rights, how might our community be more just and positive?

8.     Look at the list in Spanish. Find 5 cognates (words that look and sound the same in Spanish and English). List the 5 cognates in Spanish and English.

Looking at Food Through Google Earth

I'm always a fan of a food post! Keeping with the Google Earth theme let's look at a few of their explorations about food.

Create a new blog post in your Spanish Blog Portfolio (or send an email to your teacher), title it the same as this blog post, then complete two of the tasks below.

1. Learn about Mexico City Street Food and describe 3 new things you learned. 
2. Which food from the  Mexico City Street Food would you want to eat? Explain your answer.
3. Learn about Global Markets and describe 3 new things you learned. 
4. Which place in Global Markets would you want to visit? Explain your answer.
5. What is a new food you learned about? Would you try it? Explain your answer.
6. What's your favorite and least favorite foods? Explain your answer.

Explore How the World Celebrates

We're coming up on end of the year holidays so let's take this opportunity to learn about many different celebrations all around the world. 

Create a new blog post in your Spanish Blog Portfolio (or send an email to your teacher), title it the same as this blog post, then complete two of the tasks below.

1. Learn about how Easter is celebrated about and describe 3 new things you learned. 
2. Learn about how Eid al-Fitr is celebrated about and describe 3 new things you learned. 
3. Learn about how Holiday Food Around the World is celebrated about and describe 3 new things you learned. 
4. Take the Holiday Traditions quiz and take a screen shot of your score.
5. Take one of the holidays you learned about and compare it to how you celebrate it. 
6. What holiday is your favorite? Explain your answer. How do you celebrate it?

Geography Games - Locate Cities Around the World

I love my playing geography games because I feel like I learn so much! Here are two more games.

Create a new blog post in your Spanish Blog Portfolio (or send an email to your teacher), title it the same as this blog post, then complete one of the tasks below.

1. Play Quizzity and take a screen shot of your score. 
2. Find 4 facts about one of the cities that you needed to locate on Quizzity.
3. Play Wiki Where and take a screen shot of your score. 
4. Find 4 facts about one of the cities that you needed to locate on Wiki Where.
5. Which place from one of the games would you want to visit? Explain your answer. 

Where Is The Best Theme Park Around The World?

We've looked at Google Earth's This is School and Google Earth's This is Home. Now let's look at theme parks around the world.

Check out Google Earth's Theme Parks Around the World

Create a new blog post in your Spanish Blog Portfolio (or send an email to your teacher), title it the same as this blog post, then complete two of the tasks below.

1. Pick one of the theme parks and describe it in detail. What are the attractions? 
2. Which theme park looks the best? Explain your answer.
3. Which theme park would you NOT want to visit? Explain your answer.
4. What is the best theme park you've ever been too? What made it so great?
5. What's your favorite ride at Kennywood? How many times have you gone? 
6. Compare two of the places with 2 similarities and 2 differences. 
7. List 3 new things your learned from one of the places. 

Explore Scary Places Around the World

We've looked at Google Earth's This is School and Google Earth's This is Home, now let's take a creepy turn, just in time for Halloween. 

Check out Google Earth's Around The World in Haunted Houses

or

Haunted Places Around the World

Create a new blog post in your Spanish Blog Portfolio (or send an email to your teacher), title it the same as this blog post, then complete one of the tasks below.

1. Pick one of the places and describe it in detail. Where is it? What is the history? Describe the inside and the outside.
2. Which place would you want to visit? Explain your answer.
3. Which place would you NOT want to visit? Explain your answer. 
4. Where is the scariest place you've ever been? 
5. Do you like going to haunted places or do you avoid them? Explain your answer.
6. Take the Quiz on Spooky Spots and take a screen shot of your score. 

Explore Cities Around the World

Google Earth has made exploring amazing cities of the world possible from your computer. They are categorized by different areas or topics. 

• Seville, (Spain)
• Havana, (Cuba)
• San Juan, (Puerto Rico)
• Barcelona, (Spain)
• Cancun, (Mexico)
• Santiago, (Chile)
• Mexico City, (Mexico
• Catalonia (Spain)

Create a new blog post in your Spanish Blog Portfolio (or send an email to your teacher), title it the same as this blog post, then complete one of the tasks below.

1. Pick one of the cities and describe 5 of the places you visit in detail. Why did you pick that place?
2. Compare two of the places with 2 similarities and 2 differences.
3. Explain how climate and culture might impact the home. 
4. Rank your top 3 cities and explain your reasoning. 
5. List 7 things you learned about a Spanish speaking place. Why did you pick that place?

Google Earth's This is School

As we start another school year, you can review previous posts about school such as Back to School Around the World, School Around the World, or How Kids Get to School.

Check out Google Earth's This is School

Create a new blog post in your Spanish Blog Portfolio (or send an email to your teacher), title it the same as this blog post, then complete two of the tasks below.

1. Pick one of the places and describe what you see in the photo in detail. What are the decorations? How is the room set up? Describe the uniforms and school materials. What is outside school area appear?
2. Compare two of the places with 2 similarities and 2 differences. 
3. Is there a school that you'd prefer to attend? Explain your answer.
4. Is there a school that you'd prefer NOT to attend? Explain your answer. 
5. List 3 new things your learned from one of the places. 

UN Sustainable Development Goals

Create a new blog post in your Spanish Blog Portfolio (or send an email to your teacher), title it the same as this blog post, then complete two of the tasks below.

1. Summarize the purpose of these goals in your own words.
2. Which of the 17 goals do you think is most important? Explain your answer.
3. Look up and briefly describe how the United Nations came about. 
4. Describe in your own words what "sustainable" means.
5. If there were no barrier to time nor money, which goal would you work to solve? Explain your answer.
6. Click on this link to learn more about why each goal matters and information about each goal. 
7. Look at the 17 Sustainable Development Goals in Spanish. List 8-10 words you understand from the Spanish images.

Google Earth's This is Home

We've all been spending a lot of time in our homes. Have you ever thought about how homes are different around the world? 

Check out Google Earth's This is Home

Create a new blog post in your Spanish Blog Portfolio (or send an email to your teacher), title it the same as this blog post, then complete two of the tasks below.

1. Pick one of the houses and describe it in detail. What are the materials? What is the shape? What is the size? Describe the decorations and furniture. Describe the outside.
2. Explain how climate and culture might impact the home. 
3. Compare two of the places with 2 similarities and 2 differences. 
4. Is there a house that you'd like to live in? Explain your answer.
5. List 3 new things your learned from one of the places. 
   

If you want to learn more about housing around the world check out the post on Dollar Street and Housing Differences Around the World.

Girls Around the World

I recently posted about This is 18, a photo series from the New York Times that follows girls from various countries. Here are a few more resources where you can learn about girls around the world.

Girlhood Around the World is a series of articles about what life is like for a girl in a different country.

#15girls is a series of articles and radio news pieces that profile teenage girls around the world.

Create a new blog post in your Spanish Blog Portfolio, title it the same as this blog post, and answer one of the following questions in complete sentences based on these images.

• Skim the title of the articles and the summaries. List 5 things that you've learned/realized/wonder about as you preview the articles. 
• Select one of the articles or audio pieces and read/listen to it and summarize the article in 4-5 sentences. 
• Explain how your life would be different if you were in the situation that is highlighted in one of these articles. 
• Explain how your life is similar to the situation that is highlighted in one of these articles. 

Comparing Cost of Living Around the World

In the last blog post we looked at how people lived in different parts of the world. Now we are going to look at more details about the Cost of Living around the world. This helps explain how far a dollar will go in different cities in the world. 

Numbeo is a website where you can look at different data from around the world. 

Create a new blog post in your Spanish Blog Portfolio, title it the same as this blog post, and complete 1 of the following tasks based on this website.

• Pick 3 different countries and create a chart comparing the 
• McMeal at McDonalds (or Equivalent Combo Meal)
• Cinema, International Release, 1 Seat
• 1 Pair of Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
• Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
• Based on this information - explain which country you'd like to live in or visit. Explain why you chose that country. 
• Pick 5 different countries and create a chart comparing one particular data point 
• Put them in order from most expensive to least expensive
• Based on this information - explain which country you'd like to live in or visit. Explain why you chose that country. 
• Use the Cost of Living Comparison  to compare Pittsburgh to another city in the world. Take a screenshot of the comparison (similar to the one above) and write a paragraph comparing/contrasting the information on the two different cities. 
• Pick a different topic in the horizontal navigation of Numbeo (like Crime, Quality of Life or Travel) and explore that topic. Explain in a paragraph and screen shots what you learned. 

Dollar Street - Compare how people live around the world

Dollar Street is an interactive website that lets you compare how different families live around the world. 

First, take the "quick tour" so you can understand how the site works. Then, explore the site. 

Create a new blog post in your Spanish Blog Portfolio, title it the same as this blog post, and answer 1-2 of the following questions in complete sentences based on this website.

• Compare two families. What is their monthly income? Describe their home, their favorite possessions, etc. Then compare those two families to your own. 
• Similar to what you see in this blog post, take screen shots of 3 different comparable aspects (pets, water outlets, next big thing they plan to buy, etc.) then include photos/descriptions of your own for these topics.
• Explain in a paragraph what you have learned about how people live around the world.
• Pick one country/family and write a paragraph describing how they live. Where are they from? What is their income? Describe 5 different searchable aspects of their lives. 
• Pick one searchable aspect (pets, water outlets, next big thing they plan to buy, etc.) and explain 10 different photos of that particular aspect. Include the country and the income for each explanation.

We are not the majority

Create a new blog post in your Spanish Blog Portfolio, title it the same as this blog post, and answer at least 2 of the following questions in complete sentences based on the video.

• List 5 facts that you learned from this video.
• Compare how you live with how other people live in the world. What do you have that others don't?
• How has the video explain diversity in the world?
• How might you look at the world (or your life) differently now? Explain

Driving Tests Around the World

Learning to drive can be a big deal! Have you ever thought about how different countries handle driving? Check out this infographic about different driving tests around the world then complete the following activities.  

You can also find more infographics at Visualistan

Create a new blog post in your Spanish Blog Portfolio, title it the same as this blog post, and answer 2 of the following questions in complete sentences based on this infographic.

• Which country do you think has the hardest test? Explain your answer.
• Which country do you think has the easiest test? Explain your answer.
• Not considering age requirements, do you think you could pass these test? Explain.
• Do you plan on getting your drivers license? If yes, when? If no, why not?

Photos of Kids Around the World

It can be very interesting to look at photos from around the world and think about how people live in different countries. A few photographers have been taking photos of different aspects of growing up around the world. 

First we have photos of young people in their rooms.

Mexico

India

Russia

See more photos here and here.

Create a new blog post in your Spanish Blog Portfolio, title it the same as this blog post, and answer 2 of the following questions in complete sentences based on these images.

• Select 3 photos (from here and here) and describe the rooms. What country do they live in? What things do they have in their room? 
• Create a Venn Diagram comparing your room to a photo. Then take a photo of the Venn Diagram and add it to your blog
• Take a photo of your room and label 10 items in Spanish.
• Compare and contrast how other young people might live around the world to how you live. How are you similar? How are you different? Provide 3 specific examples. 

Next we have photos of young people with their toys.

Nicaragua

Costa Rica

Mexico

See more photos here.

Create a new blog post in your Spanish Blog Portfolio, title it the same as this blog post, and answer 2 of the following questions in complete sentences based on these images.

• Select 3 photos (from  here) and describe the toys. What country do they live in? What toys are their favorite? 
• Compare and contrast how other young people might live around the world to how you live. How are you similar? How are you different? Provide 3 specific examples. 
• What was your favorite toys as a kid? What about your siblings/cousins?

Greetings Around the World

In Spanish there are very many different ways people greet each other, just like there are many different ways people greet each other in English. It can depend on how you grew up as well as the region you are from. Check out these videos that talk about different ways people greet and say goodbye to one another around the world.

This video is about ways to say hello and goodbye in different Spanish speaking countries.

This video is about different ways people greet each other around the world.

Create a new blog post in your Spanish Blog Portfolio, title it the same as this blog post, and complete one of the following tasks based on these videos.

• Create a chart with two different columns of all the different ways people in the first video greeted and said goodbye
• Make a chart with the second video of with one column being the country or region the person is from, the 2nd column being the way they greet someone, and the 3rd column the English translation.
• Find another video that demonstrates how people greet each other around the world and publish it to your blog with a summary.
• Explain different ways you greet different people. For example, do you greet your grandparents different than your teachers? Do you hug some people when you greet them, shake hands with others, or do something else? Consider the following different groups:
• cousins, aunts/uncles
• parents, siblings
• peers, friends
• friends of friends who you meet at a concert or sporting event
• someone who is interviewing you for a job
• principal, boss