Virtual Tour Planning

For this assignment, I wanted to explore the Pacific Islands. I found one island from each division (melanesia, micronesia, and polynesia) and then I also decided to add another island that isn't part of Oceania but rather associated with the nearest continent. I thought this would be an interesting way to learn about the different cultures within the Pacific Islands. This could be taught using standard 2, objective 1 for the 3rd grade curriculum. A tour on this would be useful because these islands are "hard to get to" places and being able to view them and learn about them through google earth will allow students the opportunity to learn about each island and the culture. It is more entertaining for students to actually see the place and for them to be able to navigate around it will help increase their own interest in learning about each island.

Location	Activity Description	Google Earth Content
1. Ni`ihau (Hawai`i: Polynesia)	Students will determine the island's position in relation to Kaua`i and how far away it is (southwest, 18 miles )	Ruler
2. Saipan (Marianas Islands: Micronesia)	Students will determine how far north Saipan is from Guam (about 120 miles)	Ruler
3. Taveuni (Fiji: Melanesia)	Students will determine the latitude and longitude of the volcano on the island and the type (lat: 16.82 S, long: 179.97 W, shield volcano)	Gallery: volcanoes
4. Taiwan	Students will determine how far north Taiwan is from the Philippines (about 225 miles)	Ruler