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Introduction: New technology affects, or newly defines, the idea of community. Communities have become geographically larger, thanks to new communications technologies such as the Internet, e-mail, cell phones, fax, and overnight mailing. Community services, such as emergency response systems, water service, city planning, and waste disposal, are more efficient and streamlined, thanks to Geographic Infomation Systems (GIS) computer technology. By participating in the activities and events for this year's theme, students will have a better understanding of how geography is used in everyday life.

The Hawaii Geographic Alliance provides you with suggestions for Geography Awareness Week which can be extended throughout the year.

Focus Question:
What exactly is your community?

Suggested Activities:

1. Introduce the Theme: What does the theme mean? Concept map class discussion. See GAW Teacher's Handbook for background information.
2. Introduce the Postcard Contest to your students. See Postcard Contest rules.
3. Suggested lessons from GAW Teacher's Handbook: "Just What, Exactly, Is Your Community?"
4. Create a GeoMystery of your community. Include clues that address the theme.
5. Cultures: Expand the theme by discussing with students how their community relates to a "global culture". Cultures are influenced by migration, trade, or telecommunications. Refer to NGS magazine - August, 1999. Suggested lessons:
   • "Technology - How Does It Change Our Culture?
   • "Your Global Neighborhood" (GAW 1995)

Focus Question:
What is Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and how is GIS and other technology connected to geography?

Suggested Activities:

1. Introduce Geographic Information Systems (GIS). GIS is a way of displaying layers of different information usually on computer generated maps.
2. Suggested lessons from GAW Teacher's Handbook: "A Picture is Worth 1,000 Data Items."
3. Suggested lessons from ESRI (Environmental Systems Research Institute):
   Lessons from "Explore Your World" are downloadable at:
   http://www.esri.com/industries/k-12/material.html#MDoc02
   • "A GIS Fable: The Road Less Traveled"
   • "Know Your Community Through GIS"
   • (There are other lessons in the lesson handbook.)
4. Use the GAW CD from last year (look at the FAQ about the CD)...learn about GIS (follow the link to ArcVoyager).

Focus Question:
How is Hawaii connected to the world?

Suggested Activities:

1. Wear a Place-Related T-Shirt -- T-shirts can tell us stories. Have the students wear a T-shirt that shows how Hawaii is connected to the world. (Check HGA website for GAW97 T-shirt lesson.)
2. Connect to another class or to another part of the world. Join a project using e-mail and the internet for communication.
   Suggested projects:
   • Online Class http://www.onlineclass.com/
   • Geo Game http://www.gsn.org/project/gg/index.cfm
3. Refer to the GeoMystery project. Compare your community with other communities displayed on the HGA GeoMystery site.
4. Literature: Share literature books with students. Topics may include stories on how people use/used different technology for their every day activities.
5. Suggested Lesson from GAW Teacher's Handbook: "Some Electronic E-vening."

Focus Question:
How does the internet help us to connect to the world?

1. Internet Scavenger Hunt - Connect to the World through the Internet.
2. Other websites that may be of interest (taken from GAW Teacher's Handbook, Nov. 14-20, 1999):
   • www.nationalgeographic.com The National Geographic Society is expanding its reach across the shrinking world through the World Wide Web. Its site contains daily news; many topics of interest to geographers, historians, scientists, and world travelers; educational activities; and "Xpeditions" for children and families--a cyberexploration of the world, including a virtual museum, a great many maps, and the National Standards.
   • www.ajkids.com "Ask Jeeves for Kids." Enter a search as a question, and you get a list of sites and questions that let you refine your search.
   • www.pbs.org/teachersource/techknow/training.html Excellent information on internet background and use.
   • www.learnthenet.com Go to "Internet Basics." Highly useful background, explanations, and how-to passages.
   • www.austria.eu.net/lic Wealth of information about the Internet and how to use it.
   • www.earthlink.net/internet Practical directions on a great many aspects of Internet use.
3. Suggested Resource: "Cultures," a map supplement to the August 1999 National Geographic, containing rich illlustrations, maps, and graphs of the growth of electronic communication, including the internet.

Focus Question:
How does GIS affect our lives?

Suggested Activities

1. GIS is important to us. Read "GIS Touches All Our Lives, Everyday," an article written in the ESRI ArcNews, Summer 1998. (www.esri.com/news/arcnews/summer98articles/26-gistouches.html) Check some of the lesson ideas. Follow through with the GAW song written by Gail Kono and transcribed by Kristi Higuchi (tape and music available from HGA in late September). Discuss how technology is connected to geography. Other music: Have students sing songs from different places. Discuss any technology connections, for example, connections to communication or transportation.
2. Invite a Speaker to the classroom to present a GIS demonstration. See GAW Teacher's Handbook for more ideas (pg. 7). Visit ESRI website for names of organizations that are sponsoring GIS Day events. (www.esri.com/gisday)
3. Visit ESRI website for additional ideas for incorporating GIS into the curriculum.
   (www.esri.com/industries/k-12/road.html)
4. Visit Mapping and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Websites (taken from GAW Teacher's Handbook, Nov. 14-20, 1999):
   • www.nationalgeographic.com/maps "The Map Machine" atlas. Interactive map making, with panning and zooming.
   • www.mapquest.com Useful map resource.
   • www.esri.com/data/online/wothphysic.html Use your Web browser to make maps about physical characteristics of the world.
   • www.esri.com/data/online/tiger/usdemog.html Use your Web browser to make maps from 50-state level to neighborhood level, about 1990 Census population and housing data.
   • www.esri.com/data/online/tiger ESRI's location for downloading up to 27 layers of detailed Census data, for any county in the U.S.
   • www.epa.gov/surf Use your Web browser to make maps of various features within a watershed. See how watersheds cut across political boundaries.
   • www.birdsource.org Use your Web browser to make maps of birds across the U.S. and compare species between two maps.
   • www.visa.com/pd/atm/main.html Use your Web browser to see where the nearest ATMs are for any place in the U.S. (See how wide a financial community is!)
   • www.realtor.com/usmap.htm Use your Web browser to see where homes that meet certain criteria are for sale. (Interesting to rely on technology to find your new geographic community, when you have to move somewhere.)
   • www.terraserver.com Use your Web browser to see aerial photos available for many areas (not all, does not include Hawaii) in the U.S. Some will be able to get down to "here's my house" level.
   • www.epa.gov/ostwater/basins EPA's site for detailed watershed data for the 48 conterminous states (does not include Hawaii). Suggest downloading the DEM ("digital elevation model") data and RF3 ("reach file 3," or streams and rivers) data.