Putting History in its Place: Using GIS to Enhance History Instruction

The skills of the historian are timeless, but their tools are not. One tool that is transforming historical research, teaching, and learning is Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Historical thinking's reliance on the intersections of space, place, and time make the history classroom a natural setting to introduce K-12 students to modern mapping tools. During this webinar participants will learn the nuts and bolts of WebGIS, and begin exploring and experiencing a variety of classroom-ready activities. Free software and lesson plans will be provided.

Chris Bunin teaches social studies and geospatial technologies at Albemarle High School in Charlottesville, Virginia. He is also Assistant Professor of Geography at Piedmont Virginia Community College and the iSTEM GIS chairperson for the Virginia Geographic Alliance. During the past decade he has collaborated on a variety of projects focused on using geospatial technologies and geoliteracy to enhance historical research and instruction. He is co-author of Jamestown to Appomattox: Mapping US History with GIS (2014) and GIS for Teachers – A Guide to Authentic K-12 Integration and Application (2017). In 2016 NCSS recognized Chris as the Secondary Social Studies Teacher of the Year, and in 2017 NCGE awarded him the Brunn Creativity Award for the Outstanding Teaching of Geography. When he is not teaching or mining historical GIS data, he can be found hiking and enjoying the Blue Ridge Mountains with his wife and their 3 children. You can follow him at @ahsgeo.