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12 (Days of) Christmas Sites for Kids and Teachers – Day 7

2 Comments Posted by @k_ferrell on December 13, 2011

On the seventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: Norad Tracks Santa! Each year, Norad tracks Santa by using four high-tech tracking systems – radar, satellites, Santa Cams and fighter jets. This site allows kids to watch as Santa is tracked as he delivers all of his presents.
For the previous days of Christmas sites, click here to see day 1, here to see day 2, here for day 3, here for day 4, here to see day 5, and here for day 6.

Norad Tracks Santa

On Christmas Eve, students can click here to track his flight live in Google Earth. They can also watch a video of him flying. There’s also a fun game area where kids can help light a Christmas Tree, help a snowman ski down a hill, put a puzzle together and more. EdTechIdeas: Norad Tracks Santa is a great site to learn about geography and places around the world. Students could chart the stops in Google Maps, calculate distances and speed required to make all of the stops possible, write a creative story about his adventure, compare and contrast Santa’s trips in the past using population data… I could go on forever!

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2 responses to “12 (Days of) Christmas Sites for Kids and Teachers – Day 7”

Stephen Downes December 13, 2011 at 6:04 am
a.k.a. the militarization of Christmas.

Not really a very nice thing.

Reply
- @k_ferrell December 13, 2011 at 8:17 am
  An interesting insight, however, that is not the intent of the site. The tradition of NORAD Tracks Santa began in 1955 after a Colorado Springs-based Sears Roebuck & Co. advertisement for children to call Santa misprinted the telephone number. Instead of reaching Santa, the phone number put kids through to the CONAD Commander-in-Chief’s operations “hotline.” The Director of Operations at the time, Colonel Harry Shoup, had his staff check the radar for indications of Santa making his way south from the North Pole. Children who called were given updates on his location, and a tradition was born.
  
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