Summary:

The Local Mapping Project asks students to communicate aspects of their local environments by creating online maps linked to tangible placemarks. Digital geolocation has become a significant means to reexamine our immediate spaces and explore how they connect with a shared history, culture, and landscape.

Each student will identify an appropriate online venue (an existing website) and then construct a Google Map for it that identifies and describes at least five relevant sites using substantive text and media (image, video, or audio). Students must then design tangible placemarks that present information through QR codes and could be deployed at these sites. Online Maps will be submitted as links. Tangible Placemarks will be submitted as .pdf files.

Online venue and subject choices are wide open. Subjects need not be overly grandiose, but they should be interesting, useful, and productive for a specific audience. Consider local historical or cultural sites, campus areas, indigenous flora and fauna sites, health and sport sites, leisure spots, etc.

Example Maps:

Many other examples may be found through Google Maps Mania.

Example Tangible Placemarks:

Resources:

Deliverables:

Practice Map Analysis (5 pts.)
Field Research Packet (10 pts.)
Venue Analysis (10 pts.)
Online Map Design Plan (5 pts.)
Tangible Placemarks Design Plan (5 pts.)
Online Map (25 pts.)
Tangible Placemarks (25 pts.)
Materials Analysis (10 pts.)
Postmortem (5 pts.)