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Educational: 4.1
Overall Design: 4.3
Ease of Use: 4.6
(4.0 = good, 4.5 = very
good, 5.0 = excellent)
Crosscountry USA (see below) is the identical program for American geography
To order from the CDROM Store,
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Program Description Commentary Who Is This Program For
Why We Selected This Program Computer Requirements
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Crosscountry Canada is a simulation program that puts you in the driver's seat of an 18-wheel truck. Your trip assignments will have you traveling across Canada (or across the U.S.A. see left), picking up different cargos and getting the goods safely to their final destination. You plan the trip yourself, using on board maps and compass to determine your best route and, once you are on the road, you can avoid having an accident or a breakdown, by ensuring that you get the rest, food, and gas you need at the right time. So how does this work?
At the beginning of each trip, you are presented with a driving assignment telling you your starting point, what goods you have to pick up, and your final destination. Using the map and the cargo guide, you decide which route you are going to take, which cities you are going to go to, to get the cargo assignments, and then using your on board compass, you set the right direction, buckle up, and away you go.
You are now traveling on the road with the scenery rolling by (see right), as you progress from city to city on your trip plan. Your truck's instrument panel will show you your gas levels, time of day, and if you check your log, how many hours you have gone without sleep or food. You decide when and where you are going or sleep and eat. Be careful. If you don't take good care of yourself and your rig, you may wind up having an accident. And so you continue, setting the direction on the compass for each new city on your planned route and you keep going, city by city, picking up cargo, until you arrive at your final destination.
Through this simulation experience, you really will become familiar with the locations of the major cities and towns and the basic geography of Canada. You also will get "first hand" experience in map reading, compass navigation, and the type of decision making that's involved in operating a commercial vehicle.
Each trip assignment is different and there are a total of 79 cities and towns that you can pass through in your travels from Dawson City to Yarmouth. The program also has Quicktime movies on each of the 50 commodities you might be carrying.
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Crossing the Rockies
Late Night Truck Stop
Coming into Town
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"I really liked trying to decide which route I was going to take and then seeing the country go by, as I traveled. The sound of the truck engine was really neat." Peter, age 11.
"The first couple of trips, I kept getting into accidents, until I figured out that I had to get more sleep and feed myself. There is lots of little things you have to remember, so you don't get into trouble." Doug, age 14
" I really liked seeing all the different scenery as I travelled around and driving both day and night, as well as driving in rain and snow." Jason, age 14
CrossCountry Canada is a novel way to introduce a young person to Canadian geography and provide them with a tangible sense of the landscape of the various parts of Canada. This program is going to appeal to anyone who would like the idea of driving their own truck and will respond to the challenge of figuring out how to navigate their way across Canada. It requires a logical mind and a good memory for the important details.
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This is a very clever way to get a young person involved in really examining and learning the geography of Canada. So often, when a subject is introduced, the outstanding question can be " So why is this important (or interesting) to know?" This program provides a very engaging way, and a very practical reason, to learn Canada's basic geography.
Crosscountry Canada has been used in Canadian schools for years and is now available for home use. The response, from many younger boys in particular, who have used this program in the past, is that they couldn't put it down. For the boys (and girls) who will enjoy this type of challenge, this program, with new assignments every time you play and seemingly endless trip variations, will have lots of "replayability". As a result, users will really learn Canada's basic cartography, as well the basics of compass navigation and map reading. A very unique program with lots of potential mileage to it.
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Pricing and Online Ordering
(or call toll free -1-800-250-9229 )
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MAC: System 7.5.3-9.0, Built for OS X.1 and later, 12 MB Hard Drive Space, 8 MB RAM, external speakers or headphones.
PC: Windows 95, 98, ME, 2000, XP, 12 MB Hard Drive Space, 8 MB RAM, external speakers or headphones.
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or to see other simulation based learning programs
Zoo Tycoon
Sim City 4 - ages 12 and up
Rollercoaster Tycoon 3 - ages 12 and up
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