![\"Google](\"https:\/\/content.lessonplanet.com\/articles\/photos\/337\/j0400620_medium_1__large.jpg?1283445712\" "\\"Google")
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There are many ways to make geography lessons memorable and interesting for your students. For example, instead of having your students stare \u00a0at maps for a class period each time you teach a geography lesson, you can get\u00a0them involved\u00a0in some hands-on activities that cement and enrich the topic. After teaching students about the\u00a0five themes of geography (location, culture, characteristics, human interaction, and movement)\u00a0you can have them practice applying these ideas by focusing on different parts of the world using some of the following activities.<\/p>\n
Google Earth\u00a0is a fantastic computer application that allows students to actually see what you are talking about when you mention a particular location. When you discuss\u00a0Mount Rushmore or the Grand Canyon, you can actually show students\u00a0the location\u00a0and take a remote tour.\u00a0Google Earth\u00a0also\u00a0allows students to explore the moon, the ocean, and their own backyard – literally.\u00a0Now, not only can you see visuals of Earth, you can\u00a0explore space and see the stars and planets.<\/p>\n
There are many projects you can assign students to get them thinking about geography. One of the first\u00a0activities I assign students is\u00a0called\u00a0the “kitchen project.” It gets them involved, it gets the family involved, and it\u2019s just plain fun!\u00a0They make a physical map of their state or country using only items found in the kitchen.\u00a0They\u00a0can use things like rice, spices, beans and cereal to make the physical textures of the area. You should send a letter home to parents\/guardians about the assignment and get a signature returned before students start work on the project. Some moms do not like their kids pilfering items from the cabinets, so it is best to involve the family in this project. You will be amazed at their finished projects!<\/p>\n
Another way to get students involved is through a scavenger hunt.\u00a0Before students begin, you should measure out\u00a0three planned routes through your school, inside or out, and count out the number of paces. Then you can put students in groups, and have them start at three different locations. You\u00a0should give\u00a0each group of students\u00a0a sheet of directions to follow, a map to trace their route, and a list of checkpoints along the way\u00a0where they can pick up\u00a0stickers or other items as prizes along the way.<\/p>\n
You can also integrate math into a study of geography. Some students have difficulty with visualizing changes in direction. First, you can have students create a design using pattern blocks on grid paper. Then you can have them label the beginning and ending point of the design, and points in between. Then they can write\u00a0directions using their directional references for moving around the perimeter of the design. For example, the directions\u00a0might be something like;\u00a0go north one cm, southeast\u00a0two cm, east\u00a0four cm, etc . . .\u00a0Students can then trade directions with a classmate and attempt to draw the design themselves using only the instructions. Here are some other lessons that provide\u00a0great ways to teach geography lessons.<\/p>\n
America’s Favorite Landmarks<\/p>\n
In this lesson students use Google Earth and other websites to take a look at famous American landmarks. They also write a position paper arguing why, or why not, their historical landmark should have its particular ranking. While this activity is geared toward high school students, the resources could be used\u00a0to teach geography\u00a0to\u00a0younger students.<\/p>\n
Learning Physical Geography\u00a0With an Edible Map<\/p>\n
This lesson has elementary students make maps that are completely edible. Using a physical map, students make a map made from food to represent the physical features of a state or country. This is a great way to get students doing hands-on activities.<\/p>\n
Where in the World Are We<\/p>\n
Students use Google Earth to solve a series of riddles to find different geographic locations. They review the five themes of geography, and create a PowerPoint presentation.<\/p>\n
Geography Game<\/p>\n
This\u00a0lesson has three different activities. In the first activity, students make a game using clues about a specific place. Then they can have their classmates guess the location.\u00a0In another activity\u00a0students use\u00a0outline maps. The last activity focuses on how items get from where they are made or produced to consumers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
There are many ways to make geography lessons memorable and interesting for your students. For example, instead of having your students stare \u00a0at maps for a class period each time you teach a geography lesson, you can get\u00a0them involved\u00a0in some hands-on activities that cement and enrich the topic. After teaching students about the\u00a0five themes of<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":599,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-598","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-math"],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/onlineduatease.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/598","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/onlineduatease.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/onlineduatease.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/onlineduatease.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/onlineduatease.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=598"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/onlineduatease.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/598\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":646,"href":"https:\/\/onlineduatease.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/598\/revisions\/646"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/onlineduatease.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/599"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/onlineduatease.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=598"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/onlineduatease.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=598"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/onlineduatease.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=598"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}