This article describes a design partnership that investigated how to integrate Google Earth, remotely sensed satellite and aerial imagery, with other instructional resources to investigate ground cover and land use in diverse middle school classrooms. Data analysis from the implementation study revealed that students acquired skills for identifying and interpreting features in remotely sensed images and were able to identify distribution patterns of major land use types in urban areas. Specific instructional strategies and techniques, including direct instruction, coaching, and modeling how to think about analyzing land use patterns, appear to have assisted diverse learners in developing certain spatial thinking skills. (Contains 5 tables and 1 figure.)