"How do Maps Work?" A Podcast & Map Gallery for Teachers

Welcome to a discussion on How Maps Work, a podcast and gallery published by the World History Center at the University of Pittsburgh in Spring 2021 and edited by Alexandra Straub. The podcast is a conversation between Ruth Mostern and Kathy Hart and is facilitated by Molly Warsh.

The podcast and map gallery are intended to prompt listeners to think broadly about the kinds of documents that can be thought of as maps, and to help teachers think about how to use many kinds of maps critically in their classrooms. People all around the world create visual representations of spatial relationships and their worlds in ways that matter to them. This guide explores the diversity of these representations and the ways that spatial information travels between people, often in the context of imperialism and colonialism. This guide also includes a list of additional reading and browsing materials

Listen to the podcast here

View the map gallery here!

Image : Aboriginal Australian Songline Map, "Water Holes at Jila Japingka and Pajpara with Parallel Sand Hills," 1987 made by Peter Skipper.