WARNING! This website is no longer actively maintained. It is an archive of 2 years work by Doug Belshaw who now blogs at dougbelshaw.com...
I love Google Earth (GE). Whether it’s creating a virtual tour or an overlay of an historical event, or working out how far I’ve travelled on my bike, it’s a great visual resource. Developing a sense of place isn’t just something which should be left to the Geography department; it’s important to make things ‘come alive’ for students by coming at it from different angles, so to speak. Here’s a brief guide to get you going using GE… 
GE can be used as a main whole-class activity with an interactive whiteboard, etc. but I think that it’s probably actually better used as a quick reference tool and visual resource. This, of course, means that you have to be comfortable navigating around it quickly. Here’s some suggestions to get up-to-speed. You should also read my post Using Google Earth in the Classroom as well as Google Earth Tips & Tricks.
1. Save your school building or educational institution as a ‘placemark’. Simply zoom to where you want to be and then go to Add/Placemark. Give it a memorable name. Later on you may find organizing placemarks by folder useful!
2. Learn handy keyboard shortcuts to save you time:
- R - aligns the earth back to north pointing towards the top of the screen.
- P - zooms out from where you are to see the whole earth and then back in again, automatically!
- +/- - zoom in/out
- F11 - go fullscreen (Windows only)
- F10 - play prepared tour
For an extensive list of keyboard shortcuts, try here! 
3. Use the measuring tool to get across an idea of scale or distance to students. Access this by going to Tools/Ruler (you can also measure a multi-point journey by clicking on the Path button when the Ruler box pops up)
4. Use overlays to emphasize a teaching point. OK, to begin with they’re a bit fiddly but once you’ve got the hang of it they become easier to do - and you can save them for future use. To insert an image go to Add/Image Overlay. I’ve created some, including this one of the range of missiles during the Cuban Missile Crisis:
5. Make your students give something back by adding something to Google Earth Community. It’s as easy as right-clicking on the placemark/flyover folder/image overlay you want to share and going to Share/Post
For example, some photos I’ve taken of the area in which I live are featured:
So have a go and experiment at break, lunchtime or after school! Get familiar with GE so you can use it in your teaching. If you’re a History teacher have a look and contribute to the relevant section on the historyshareforum. If it’s pre-prepared lessons using GE you’re after, have a look at GELessons.com! 
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Do you have any ideas about using this technique to help students with ADD? Thanks! Laura