Savannah, what a nice spot to return for a vacation get away! An impressive 46% of the membership attended this conference! How many organizations can say that?
NCGE is such a warm gathering of scholars and teachers from many disciplines, all united by geography. Everyone in this organization is excited about how geography can change perspective for any subject. It's something to consider! Even my former 7th graders noticed that "everything's mappable." For a planet full of visual learners, adding geographic content to your instruction makes sense. Folks in this organization have great ideas and want to share!
I suppose that I have become a geographer. I never considered myself a true geographer but Dr. Jan Smith at Shippensburg University in Pennsylvania said, "If you teach with geography, you're a geographer." My contribution this year was in the computer lab teaching about using geospatial technologies in English Language Arts and a new work on short(20 minute), content-driven activities for elementary students. Also not to be missed is the map gallery of student GIS work from middle school to university!
If you'd like to get a sense of what was happening, do a Twitter search for #ncge and you will find some great information! Follow along all year! Be on the watch for next year's conference information. We're headed to Portland, Oregon in August of 2011! And no matter what you teach, join us!
