Exploring Ohio Mound Builders with Google Earth

Get the software you will need for this project - it's free from Google:

Geotag your pictures with Google Earth and Picasa to create a KMZ file that you can upload to your web site, link from your blog or wiki, or email to parents and classmates. Add some background information or research to create a media rich final project. The video below will get you started:

InfOhio Resources to get the project started:

Lesson idea

Pique students' interest with the Sunwatch Village video above. Then divide the class into small groups and have each group research one of the following topics/sites:

Fort Ancient
Inscription Rock
Story Mound
Miamisburg Mound
Flint Ridge State Memorial
Adena Mound
Fort Hill
Seip Mound
Serpent Mound
Newark Earthworks
Leo Petroglyph
Circleville Earthworks
High Bank Works
Hopeton Earthworks
Mound City Group
Hopewell Mound Group

Keywords for searching:

ohio, earthworks, adena, hopewell, "mound builders"

Have each group create a KMZ file in Google Earth that contains the results of their research, including text and pictures. Collect the KMZ files from each group and combine them into one KMZ file that can be posted to your school web site for download or viewing in Google Maps.

Other Resources

Extension

If you're very brave and have an interest in teaching your students about media literacy and the reliablitly of resources, you might interest your students in digging deeper into this quote from Giants of Ohio and the Mound Builders:

"In the Ohio River Valley, Indian Mounds abound. In 1872, Seneca Township, Noble County, Ohio, in what is now called 'Bates' Mound three skeletons wre found. All three skeletons unearthed were at the very least eight feet tall in heighth with bone structure proportional to their height. Another amazing discovery about these skeletons is that they all had double rows of teeth."

Another site about giant skeletons with double rows of teeth: Land of Giants