One major part of the Where We Are From program is introducing students to the power of maps. Maps can shape our world and the way we experience it by including certain features (like a road) and excluding others (like the best tacos in Santa Barbara). They are a reflection of the worldview of the people who make them and often exclude the viewpoints of people who aren’t in power. We asked students to tell us an important place in Santa Barbara as a way of giving them the power to say something about where they live and to show that their stories are part of a larger story about what it means to be in seventh grade in Santa Barbara in 2020.
Below is a Google map with all of the places that students identified as being important to them. We have separated and color coded them by period to make them easier to find. Clicking the icons will bring up information about who chose the location, why they chose it, and sometimes a picture of the place in question. You can click through to a larger map that is easier to navigate as well! Thank you for exploring!