SE MAPS has submitted an abstract to the Regional Meeting of the National Science Teachers Association in Birmingham, Alabama, November 19-21, 1998. Please put this date on your calendar.

ALABAMA

FLORIDA

GEORGIA

LOUISIANA

MISSISSIPPI

NORTH CAROLINA

SOUTH CAROLINA

TENNESSEE

Those folks waiting for draft copies of imagery from Burgess Howell may not have to wait much longer. Burgess has described the process as similar to filling up a bathtub. The water rises evenly throughout the tub, but takes a long time to overflow. When the tub finally overflows, water pours out everywhere. If the analogy is correct, we may soon have a flood. In the process of scanning and/or digitizing the various images needed, Burgess has followed the most efficient route from a technical standpoint. Rather than take a particular image through a long series of procedural steps, and then set up all over again for the next image, he has taken all images through step one, then through step two, etc. While this policy has strained the patience of some state coordinators, the SE MAPS Project Staff at Clemson believes that in the long run, the time saved by this decision will be worth the temporary inconvenience.

As part of the customization process, it is necessary to create a detailed layout for each SE MAPS product. A suggested template is shown below. It is important for each state development team to construct detailed layouts of each study area. Remember that each study area is allocated one side of a sheet of paper for map data and one side of another sheet for image data. Sample layouts for the Kings Mountain Study Area are included below in this newsletter. Please refer to these samples when sketching out your own layouts.

USE GRID LAYOUT TO DESIGN PRODUCTS

Each cartographic product should be designed as a 33 inch by 21 inch sheet. Format may be vertical or horizontal. Each completed grid layout should contain the following information:

• Name and Study Area Designation (example 7B).
• Detailed description of data sources for maps and/or images for main map and image plus any insets to occur on the sheet.
• Fractional scale of final product - for main map & any insets.
• Accurate positioning of each image or map, or part of image or map, including crop lines, mosaic lines, etc. on grid. Use latitude/longitude coordinates for consistency.
• Notes and comments on special customization instructions.
• Leave space on grid for LOGO BOX which should contain the official SE MAPS logo, the official NSF logo, and a brief, but standardized description of the program with copyright information. Allow approximately 20 square inches on grid.
• Leave space on grid for LEGEND BOX which should contain a scale bar, fractional scale, index map of southeast showing location of study area, compass symbol, map name and numerical designation, and list of data sources with dates. Allow approximately 45 square inches on grid for this box.

Those of you who are good at arithmetic will realize that (based on the paper size of 23 inch by 35 inch) we actually have one-inch margins along each of the four edges of each sheet. These margins will contain latitude/longitude information and titles and designation of that particular product. If you can think of anything else that should go there, let us know.

SC MAPS PROJECT TIMETABLE

APRIL, 1998

• State Coordinator selects pilot schools and recruits one master teacher from each school to attend the July conference at Clemson. Preliminary planning and scheduling should begin for teacher training activities in Fall.
• - State Coordinator should make contact with Phil Astwood to be sure their selection of pilot schools and teachers is in accordance with the guidelines Phil set up last Fall, and to get help in acquiring signed agreements with schools.
• - Burgess Howell gets draft versions of all cartographic products to state coordinators for distribution to team members.
• - state development team members continue writing activities according to state schedule and timetable of state coordinator.
• - state development team members work on designing their cartographic products on the standard grid layout sheet.
• - State Coordinators select a few development team members to attend July conference at Clemson (July 7-10).

• - State Coordinator sends narrative drafts (in electronic format) to Burgess Howell for posting on SE MAPS web site.
• - state development team members continue writing activities according to state schedule and timetable of state coordinator.
• - completed standard grid layout sheets for each study area should be sent to Clemson Project Office and to Burgess Howell.
• - chapter background information and regional sections written at Clemson to correlate with regional cartographic products.
• - Burgess Howell distributes drafts of regional products to state coordinators for dissemination to development team.
• - publishers interviewed and draft version of contract circulated to state teams for comment.

• - State Coordinator sends final list of participants for July conference to Norma Adams at Clemson.
• - state development team members continue writing activities according to state schedule and timetable of state coordinator.
• - Burgess Howell provides second draft versions of all cartographic products to state coordinators for distribution & review.
• - chapter background information and regional sections written at Clemson to correlate with regional cartographic products.
• - all information for margins, legends, etc. delivered to Burgess Howell so conference drafts will be close to final.
• - development teams review drafts from other states (available on website) and submit comments to state coordinators.

• - July Conference held at Clemson University, July 7-10.
• - review & discussion of all narratives & cartographic products
• - Burgess Howell brings final drafts to conference
• - finalization of plans, schedules, format, etc. for pilot testing in schools
• - training of master teachers (from pilot schools) in philosophy of SE MAPS and use of materials
• - explanation of assessment guidelines and importance of valid data collection procedures
• - discuss options for fly-by sequences and other CD-ROM content; assignment of tasks to state teams
• - state development team members revise narratives according to feedback & review from conference.
• - Selection of publisher and printing of final versions of cartographic products (priority to those used in pilot testing).
• - development teams begin acquiring additional regional and local maps and images designated for the CD-ROM component.

• - Teacher-training workshops held at schools for teachers who will be involved with pilot testing.
• - cartographic products and draft Teaching Manuals delivered to pilot schools.
• - development teams continue acquiring additional regional and local maps and images designated for the CD-ROM component.
• - state development team members continue revising activities according to state schedule and timetable of state coordinator.