Twisted Sifter has a great article that includes pictures of “40 Maps That Will Help You Make Sense of the World.” Not all of them are appropriate to show students, but some of them would be great to use for incorporating some Depth and Complexity into the classroom. Here are a few, and some suggestions.
Big Idea – What general statement could you make about this map?
Change Over Time – How has the metric system been accepted throughout the world since its invention?
Multiple Perspectives – What are the pros for using the metric system? What are the cons? Who might benefit from its adoption by the U.S.? Who would suffer if it became our only method of measurement?
Rules – How are the laws about driving different in countries that use the left side than the ones that use the right?
Details – What other aspects of life are effected by driving orientation? (For example, car manufacturing, and street signs.)
Unanswered Questions – What does this map not tell us about driving orientation? (For example, is one way more safe than the other?)
Big Idea – What conclusions can you make from this map?
Patterns and Trends – What similarities do you see? Are there other things that the regions of the same color may have in common?
Ethics – What arguments or controversies might people have about these results?
And finally, this map sparked a little creative thinking from me. How would the world be different if it was rearranged?
