If the world is flat why do people of similar abilities and interests flock to the same geographical areas? If you can enjoy the same benefits in a scenic city like Vancouver why would you put up with the crowds and high rent of New York City? In Who's Your City Richard Florida attempts to answer that question.
Each city has a vibe of it's own. The twin cities area is nice. New York, London, and Tokyo are financial centers. Los Angeles is the entertainment capital of the world. The reason these cities are the way they are is because of the citizens they attract. People of like minds tend to congregate. People want to socialize with others of similar mind set. Big ideas are born when people of similar interests collaborate. If these people are your neighbors there will be more opportunity for the birth of big ideas. Where you live has an impact on how your life will turn out, the person will turn out to be, and contribute to your successes.
Who's Your City will help you examine why where you live has an impact on how you live. Every family has a reason why they ened up where they did. Was it a job relocation? Are you rooted near family? Are you a military family? Did you move to be with a loved one? All of these reasons and more will give new perspective on why we are like we are.
It is so easy to live and stay within your comfort zone. Young students want to fit in and be accepted by peers. It can be easy to forget that life elsewhere can be very different. Instead of worrying if friends will like the outfit you chose for the day they are worrying about life threatening things, like war in their backyard.
This unit attempts to show students depending where you live your life, you will be affected by geographical location. A student living in an urban area may be unfamiliar with the daily workings of a farm. Chances are a student living on a farm will be very unaware about living in an urban area. This example is just in the United States! Imagine how unaware we must be about other countries!
In an effort to familiarize students with life in other cities or countries I would like to establish pen pals with the class to let them experience first hand from the kids living lives in cities and countries far away. It is easy to generalize people you do not know personally. If students make friends with kids in different places it makes it much harder to buy into negative stereotypes. When students make that bond with other students we are helping rid the world or racism while learning about geography!
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