Posts filed under ‘Articles’
62. “Before New York” by Peter Miller, National Geographic September 2009
Retell: Peter Miller investigates the Mannahatta Project, a group who have analyzed several historical maps in order to create pictures of what Manhattan might have looked like when Henry Hudson spotted the island back in 1609.
Topics: New York, beavers, then & now, New Amsterdam, Hudson, conservation, geography, maps
Units of Study: Nonfiction, Content Area
Habits of Mind: thinking interdependently, responding with wonderment and awe, striving for accuracy
Reading Skills: envisionment, determining importance, questioning
My Thoughts: My eyes lit up when I received my monthly National Geographic magazine yesterday afternoon. The feature article, “Before New York,” is dedicated to presenting a picture of the landscape of New York City before it was the crowded, bustling town it is today. If you are a 4th grade teacher in New York I highly recommend going out to your local news stand and picking up a copy today. The article includes several pictures of ‘then and now’ maps and digital renderings. I plan on reading this article (or a portion of it) when we do our unit on New York geography. The article highlights how cartographers pose questions, strive for accuracy and work in groups. I may just reread the beginning of the article where the author tells the story of a beaver named Jose who appeared near the Bronx zoo. According to the article beaver haven’t been spotted in New York City in over 200 years. If you don’t have a subscription check out the National Geographic website. If you have a projector in your classroom you could share the interactive maps of New York after reading the article.
Teachable Texts 