Incredible Resources on Countries Around the World!

2/19/12's post covered amazing photos on every nook and cranny of the planet. The two sites here add even more information on this world. Students will truly have a great time exploring languages, foods, different forms of etiquette, and much more.

A WORLD OF CULTURES offers link after link on discovering key information on every country in the world. Students will also find links to embassies and consulates. Such links would enhance any country report they were assigned to do in your class. Further, travel guides are included full of breath-taking photographs of the rich beauty and treasures of the country. The Library of Congress is also included as a source for many of the countries covered.

COUNTRY GUIDES TO CULTURES AND MORE provides specifics that any student (or teacher for that matter) would appreciate. Cultural taboos, etiquette for students who may wish to study abroad, eye contact, etc. I did notice that some of the north African countries did not offer information on school rules, but for the most part, they were the exception.

Between the two sites above, students will have an insight into the world that will be a close second to actually visiting the country:)

Denise

ELL TEACHER PROS

See New York Grow Over 200 Years:)

No matter what subject area you teach, you will definitely enjoy weaving this site into your lesson. If you have been to New York (Manhattan), have you ever wondered how the layout of the streets change after Wall Street? South of Wall Street is very European (a bit hard to follow without a map due to the irregular shapes of blocks among other things), but when you leave that area, you can navigate with ease. In fact, one might argue that for the most part, it is quite difficult to get lost.

This link shows the development of Manhattan's unique grid layout over 200 years.

NYC TIMELINE

Now, what might your students do with such information? If they are US history students (ELLs especially), they might contrast Manhattan in 1800 with Manhattan 2012. Bubble maps work or simple T-charts. How about having them create a Manhattan without the grid setup? How might this have affected the present status of the city? Would it still be the jewel of the US that it is now? Why or why not?

If the class is world history, would the Dutch style have possibly stymied growth and progress? Why or why not? Explain.

Teachers could then have students select any city of the world and look at its growth and development over time. Did the city layout help or hinder growth and prosperity? Why or why not? Explain.

Here is the complete ARTICLE. Your more advanced students might like to try reading this. For ELLs and those who generally need assistance, you could provide guided reading questions to help them process the material. As the teacher, pull out only the most important vocabulary words ELLs would absolutely have to know to benefit from the information presented.

As an end activity, why not have them in groups of 4, create a model of what they think a big city will look like in 2212. They could then justify their changes in writing (differentiate here according to their English levels). To get them started, you might ask them to think how a metropolitan center would have to changed to accommodate a tripling of its population. How will this affect schooling, traveling, working, etc.? Do some think alouds ("hmm...I think schools, as we know them, will have to change. Maybe students will have to attend class in their homes. What do you think?") to get them started and then interact with each group as they create their future cities (with justifications for every feature they add).

Denise

ELL TEACHER PROS

Wow, Over the Last 100 Years, We Have Come a Long Way Technologically Speaking!

Often times our students seem to take for granted that their technology has been around for ages:) Sometimes, it is worth the effort on our part to challenge them to do some research on the technology that preceded their latest gadgets.

What I have added here is a link to a You Tube video that traces technological advances back 100 years. The viewer is presented with question after question on the "usefulness" of the invention. For example, in the 1940's "Who needs a television when we have cinema?" Of course, students may laugh at that now, but this was the way many felt about the newest "gadget."

100 YEARS OF FANTASTIC TECHNOLOGY PREDICTIONS You may want them (or you) to write down all the questions to form a timeline. Then, have groups of 2 or 4 select one of the predictions to gather pictures, news articles on the invention (and the views of people of the time on the object), and then share how that invention transformed society:) Kids will love the challenge.

Denise
ELL Teacher Pros