This is the hand out for the BCTEAL 2023 session using Google Earth to Connect through Land, Language and Culture.

1. John Allan 2023
Using Google Earth to Connect through Language, Land & Culture Activities
The Google Earth resource can be used to encourage learners to dive deeper into topics while
providing learners with links to locations. This guide introduces different ways to use to explore
indigenous peoples, lands and cultures.
Activity 1 – Sacred Location Uluru
Set a place name or landmark that the students can search for. In this example it is Uluru, Australia.
Ensure that the learners have a worksheet or aspects of the location to record while they are exploring.
1) Go to the Google Earth by typing https://earth.google.com in the browser address bar.
The Google Earth app appears.
2) In the vertical menu bar, click on the Search icon.
3) Type the location name in the search field.
A list of locations appears below the search field.
In this case, there are also Guided Tours
available.
Please be aware that this is not always the case.

2. John Allan 2023
4) Choose the most appropriate of the Places option.
Google Earth goes to the location. Usually with a n ariel perspective view.
The starting point depends on the person who set up the location link.
5) Click on the More info link.
6) Click on the Street View icon to follow roads and
trails.
7) Click on a spot on the screen (option, drag the
pegman to a place)
8) Return to the Search icon.
9) If there is a Guided Tours option, click on it.

3. John Allan 2023
10) Choose one of the tours.
11) Tours vary by author. This tour is a video with informational text in a panel.

4. John Allan 2023
Activity 2 – Celebrating Indigenous Languages
1) Go to the Google Earth by typing https://earth.google.com in the browser address bar.
The Google Earth app appears.
2) In the left column of the screen, click on the Voyager icon.
3) The Voyager menu choose the menu link, Culture.
Note: Several topic options appear in poster format.

5. John Allan 2023
4) Scroll down the page until you see the Celebrating Indigenous Languages poster.
5) Click on the Celebrating Indigenous Languages poster.
Note: A split screen appears with the globe or a map with red points on the left and an
information panel on the right.

6. John Allan 2023
6) Drag on the globe to rotate it.
Note: The Google Earth navigation feature work in Voyager.
7) In the panel, read the introductory text.
8) In this voyage, click on the Play button to watch the introductory video.
9) After the video is over, close the video.
10) Click on the Explore button to start learning about indigenous languages.
Note: There are 84 languages to explore.
11) The first language screen appears. The globe zooms into a satellite view of a related living space.
Note: The red pointer.
12) The perspectives and scale of this image can be altered by the Google Earth Viewing
controllers.

7. John Allan 2023
13) Above the text, there is a picture of a person and an audio clip of a person providing authentic
language responding to three prompts such as how do you greet people in your language? Click on
the Play button to hear the response in indigenous language.
14) Just under the highlighted person’s picture is the name of the language, the person’s name, the
nation’s name and their location.
15) Below the audio player is a description of the person pictured and their current situation.
16) To move to the next language, click on the right chevron at the
bottom of the screen.
17) To get a global view to choose a language based on location. Double
click on the globe in the Google Earth View tools.

8. John Allan 2023
18) Move the globe, to a place that you want to examine, click on the red pointer icon.
19) The language panel appears for the selected language.
20) Click on the Fly To icon to zoom in on the languages’ area if the globe is not pointing at the
current language’s location
.
21) After the languages have been viewed, click on the Voyager icon to return.

9. John Allan 2023
Activity 3 – Exploring an issue – Nature & Environment (deforestation)
1) Go to the Google Earth by typing https://earth.google.com in the browser address bar.
2) The Google Earth app appears.
3) In the left column of the screen, click on the Voyager icon.
4) The Voyager menu appears at the bottom of the screen.
5) Choose the menu link, Layers.

10. John Allan 2023
6) Several topic options appear in poster format, click on the link Timelapse in Google Earth.
Note: A split screen appears with a map on the left and a menu on the right.
7) Choose the Changing Forests option.
8) The first screen appears. The globe zooms into a
satellite view of the related space.
9) The perspectives and scale of this image can be altered by the
Google Earth Viewing controllers.
10) In the top right side of the panel, there is a manually controlled slide
show with more detailed images.

11. John Allan 2023
11) Just under the slideshow is the name of the environmental situation/activity, and the location.
Click on the Play button to hear the response in indigenous language.
12) Below these is the timelapse timeline player.
13) To control the view, either press the Pause / Play button to control the time lapse or click on the
year.
14) Under the Timelapse player is a text description of the issue.
15) Click on the text link, CAUSES OF DEFORESTATION.
16) A new tabs opens with an article, “What’s Driving Deforestation?”
17) To move to the next timelapse, click on the right chevron at the bottom of the screen.

12. John Allan 2023
18) To get a global view to choose a deforestation point in the world, double click on the globe in
the Google Earth View tools.
19) Move the globe, to a place that you want to examine, click on the red pointer icon.
20) The panel appears for the selected area.
21) Click on the Fly To icon to zoom in on the area.
22) After the languages have been viewed, click on the Voyager icon to return.

13. John Allan 2023
Similar activities:
• Tokyo’s Heat Island Effect
• Fragile Beauty
• Sources of Energy
• Warning Planet
• Urban Expansion
• Safeguarding Iconic Parks
• Bald Eagles Live
• Sea Level Rise and the Fate of Coastal Cities
• Tracking the Rain Bird
• Crab Migration on Christmas Island
• Women on the Front Lines of Conservation
• The Return of the Sea Otter
• See Climate Change’s Impact
• Waterways of Space
• Achieving Zero Landfill Waste in National Parks
• Exploring Earth’s Ecosystems
• Be a Scientist with Your Smartphone
• Ocean to Plate
• Reducing Plant Extinction
• Helping People and Animals Coexist
• Treks: Churchill, Manitoba
• Natural Treasures: Mountains
• Brown Bears of Katmai National Park, Alaska
• Clouds from Space
• Treks: The Canadian Arctic
• Natural Treasures: Islands
• The Arctic Life
• Dive Into the Planet with Jill Heinerth
• The Greatest Gatherings on Earth
Activity 4 Street View (Explore the streets or terrain)
1) Go to the Google Earth by typing https://earth.google.com in the browser address bar.
2) The Google Earth app appears.
3) In the left column of the screen, click on the Voyager icon.
4) The Voyager menu appears at the bottom of the screen.

14. John Allan 2023
5) Choose the menu link, Street View.
6) Choose the resource, Exploring Canada’s National Parks.
7) The first screen appears. The globe zooms into a satellite view of the related space.
8) To have a ground level view of featured national
parks, click on one of the icons in the Explore
Canada’s National Parks panel.

15. John Allan 2023
Google Street View replaces the globe on the screen. There is a descriptive panel with several areas to
discover using the navigation arrows. The large area is now a Street View. Go left or right to explore.
9) Click on the right chevron to go to the next areas to discover.
10) To stop exploring, click on the Table of contents icon.
11) To tour around another place, click on one of the icons in the Explore Canada’s National Parks
panel.
12) After you have explored enough, click on the Voyager icon to return.

16. John Allan 2023
Activity 5 – Myths and Legends from Around the World
1) Go to the Google Earth by typing https://earth.google.com in the browser address bar.
2) The Google Earth app appears.
3) In the left column of the screen, click on the Voyager icon.
4) The Voyager menu appears at the bottom of the screen.
5) Choose the menu link, Education.
6) Find and choose the Myths and Legends from Around the World link.
7) Click on the Explore button.
8) On the Myths… panel, click on the chevrons to navigate to Myth #6, Her Seven Brothers.

17. John Allan 2023
9) The Explorer screen appears. It introduces the myth. There is a Take a closer look link but it seems
to be broken at this time.
The media in the panel is a video in this case. On the left side is the globe with pinned areas of
interest.

18. John Allan 2023
Activity 6 – Canada’s Residential Schools
Define a concept that the students can search for. In this example it is Canada’s Residential schools.
Ensure that the learners have a worksheet or aspects of the location to record while they are exploring.
1) Go to the Google Earth by typing https://earth.google.com in the browser address bar.
The Google Earth app appears.
2) In the vertical menu bar, click on the Search icon.
3) Type is Canada’s Residential schools in the search field.
A list of locations appears below the search field. (ensure that Places is chosen)
There are many more in the guided tour resources..

19. John Allan 2023
4) Choose one of the results.
5) Click on the More info icon if there is a link.
6) Read and scroll downwards for more information.
7) Return to the main panel by clicking on the left arrow at the top of the screen.
8) In this case, there are also Guided Tours available. Click on the Guided Tours link beside Places.

20. John Allan 2023
9) Choose one of the tours.
10) This tour is a comprehensive featuring four sections.
• Background and history
• Inside a residential school
• Effects of a System
• Moving Forward
A direct way to access this resource is:
In Google Earth Voyager, click on the Culture option. Scroll downward and click on the Cana’s
Residential Schools image shown here.

21. John Allan 2023
Activity 8 – Indigenous Cultural Heritage
1) Go to the Google Earth by typing https://earth.google.com in the browser address bar.
The Google Earth app appears.
2) In the left column of the screen, click on the Voyager icon.
3) The Voyager menu choose the menu link, Culture.
Note: Several topic options appear in poster format.

22. John Allan 2023
4) Scroll down the page until you see the Indigenous Cultural Heritage poster.
5) Click on the Let’s Go button.
A split screen appears with a map with red points on the left and an information panel on the
right.
6) In the panel, read the introductory text.
7) In this voyage, click on the Play button to watch the introductory video.
8) After the video is over, close the video.

23. John Allan 2023
9) Click on the Learn more button to start learning about indigenous languages.
Note: There are 8 themes to explore.
Jingle Dress and Hoop Dances
• Smudging Ceremony
• Flower beadwork
• Totem Poles
• Ivory and Soapstone Carvings
• Fiddle Music and the Me’tis Jig
• Canoes on the West Coast
• Mi’kmaw Woven Baskets
Activity 9 – Women on the Front Lines of Conservation
1) Go to the Google Earth by typing https://earth.google.com in the browser address bar.
2) The Google Earth app appears.
3) In the left column of the screen, click on the Voyager icon.
4) The Voyager menu appears at the bottom of the screen.
5) Choose the menu link, Nature.
6) Find and choose the Women on the Front Lines of Conservation link
10) Click on the Let’s Go button.
A split screen appears with a map with red points on the left and an information panel on the
right.
11) In the panel, read the first featured environmental project.
12) Click on the Read more button.
13) Navigate to the next six women lead and inspired environmental projects.

24. John Allan 2023
Activity 10 Projects (Google Earth Presentation)
Students and teachers can create projects. The results are media rich with links to real places.
Instructors can use these to teach lessons and students can use them to complete projects for
their portfolios.
1) Go to the Google Earth by typing https://earth.google.com in the browser address bar.
The Google Earth app appears.
2) In the vertical menu bar, click on the Projects icon.
3) Click on the New project button.
4) Choose Create project in Google Drive. (KML is a geographic data file format)
5) Change the project’s title.
6) Click on the New feature button.
7) Click on Search to add a place.
8) Type a place name.

25. John Allan 2023
9) Choose the Place name in the resulting list.
Google Earth flies to the location.
10) In the panel, click on the Add to Project button.
11) Choose the Placemark icon and change the colour if required.
12) Click on the Back arrow.
13) The location and all of its information is not a part of the Google Earth Project.

26. John Allan 2023
14) Add more places.
15) To draw shapes on the maps, click on the New feature and Draw a line or shape option.
16) Draw shapes or lines on project maps.
17) To add images to the project, click on the New feature button.
18) Click on the Add folder option.
19) Name the folder in the Title box.
20) Click on the add images icon.
21) Drag or upload images for the project in the pop up.
22) Add descriptive text.
23) Click on the Back arrow.