The authors provide the reader an opportunity to see how second-grade children can use a twelfth-century painting as historical evidence to identify transportation modes, economic activities, and cultural features of Bianjing, an ancient Chinese city. They compare Bianjing with their community using modern mapping technology. Through this approach, art, history, geography, economics, technology, and civics are integrated into an engaging inquiry lesson.

Students can use the large Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database to conduct research and discover the scope of the slave trade over four centuries.

In this engaging activity, AP Psychology students used ArcGIS Online and Survey123 to make connections between geographic locations and students’ emotional responses to those places.

In this piece, the author outlines ways in which elementary educators can integrate local history across the curriculum and engage elementary students. She argues that this approach is a powerful opportunity to engage students’ interests and excitement. Exploration into local history is an instructional experience that demands a variety of content, skills, and strategies while focusing on the learning of people, places, and events.

Using GIS in the classroom can present unique challenges. Here, the authors outline key strategies for maximizing student understanding while minimizing technical friction.