Monitor/Improve Motor Skill: Gmaps Pedometer

Gmaps Pedometer is a web tool known as a mashup that repurposes an original service (in this case, Google Maps) to accomplish a new goal. The pedometer tool allows a user to zoom in on any Google Map, set waypoints around an area commonly ran or walked (e.g., the school track or parking lot), and then calculate the distance and the approximate calories a person of a certain weight would burn if they took that path. I created this sample map of Umstead State Park in Raleigh and one of their popular trails (Sal's Branch trail). If a 200-pound adult took the 2.35 mile trail, they would burn approximately 355 calories. Another cool thing about Gmaps Pedometer is each trail/map that is created generates a unique URL, so students could use this and save their work as a URL for sharing or teacher grading. This might make for an interesting interdisciplinary project with science and langauge arts where students walk their trails, collect scientific data, and/or engage in writing about what they saw on their trip.