Laura Corin Posted August 7, 2009 Share Posted August 7, 2009 The British geography course that I am using with Calvin is not going well: it's more an international development/economics course, but skims the surface in a way that is just dull. Calvin is interested in doing something that is more traditional world geography: countries and capitals, etc. I'm looking at Trail Guide to World Geography, but he really learns best from story-based curricula. He loves history and English, and maths has really been brightened up for him by Life of Fred. Is there anything that you can think of that might fit this learning style? It needs to be fairly in-depth (he's a bright kid) but not time consuming, as his schedule is already pretty heavy: three languages and a high school classical civilisation course, plus all the usuals. Thanks Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harmonyartmom Posted August 7, 2009 Share Posted August 7, 2009 In the back of the Geography Trails TE (page 110) there is a whole list of literature by country that might fit your need. We are using the Trail Guide to World Geography with our two high school age boys. Also the Trail Guide includes a literature study of Around the World in 80 Days. Just so you know. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted August 7, 2009 Author Share Posted August 7, 2009 That's good to know. We used a free online unit study on 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea a couple of years ago so this might be a nice follow-up, and the other literature ideas might be good. How long do you spend on it each day and how many weeks do you think it will take to complete? Thanks Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kfamily Posted August 7, 2009 Share Posted August 7, 2009 Dd (12) will be reading Halliburton's Book of Marvels. This might be a good spine book and you could add a novel for each continent or selected countries. HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harmonyartmom Posted August 7, 2009 Share Posted August 7, 2009 There are 27 weeks planned without Around the World in 80 Days. The plans incorporate a lot of really great geography ideas into the reading of the book. I am not sure how much per day we are going to spend on TG since we are using quite a few other resources as well. What I really like about TG plans are that they are so open ended. They give you lots of great ideas to further your research and I know from when we did TG Bible Lands, the boys love to follow up on things that interest them. I would think that if you are doing the high school level assignments-geo questions every day, maps, geography notebook, and the "Trail Blazing" suggestions...I would think about 30-40 minutes per day. My best estimate since we haven't started yet. :) We are doing more of a World Geography and Cultures study so I have added in quite a few other things. We have chosen one or two of her listed literature suggested for each continent. (She does not have suggestions for Antarctica although we may reread Shackleton's Voyage of the Endurance.) Hope that helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jibaker103 Posted August 7, 2009 Share Posted August 7, 2009 The British geography course that I am using with Calvin is not going well: it's more an international development/economics course, but skims the surface in a way that is just dull. Calvin is interested in doing something that is more traditional world geography: countries and capitals, etc. I'm looking at Trail Guide to World Geography, but he really learns best from story-based curricula. He loves history and English, and maths has really been brightened up for him by Life of Fred. Is there anything that you can think of that might fit this learning style? It needs to be fairly in-depth (he's a bright kid) but not time consuming, as his schedule is already pretty heavy: three languages and a high school classical civilisation course, plus all the usuals. Thanks Laura If you get the Ultimate Geography & Timeline Guide from Geography Matters it teaches you how to incorporate geography into other subjects and has a section on teaching geography through literature. It even has some maps included! Jennifer Mother to Noah Age 13 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted August 8, 2009 Author Share Posted August 8, 2009 Any other ideas? Thanks Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cschnee Posted August 8, 2009 Share Posted August 8, 2009 Hi there, Maybe Top Secret Adventures would work for him. Here is the description at the website. "In this secret agent-themed puzzle book club, children become detectives searching for who, what, and where clues to solve mysteries one country at a time. Each kit is a complete unit. As kids work through each step in the mystery they’ll learn about the people, culture, terrain, history, and geography of a specific country while learning to follow directions, think logically, and use reference materials." It says it's for kids aged 7-12, so it may be on the young side for him. Here is the website http://www.highlights.com/shopping/product/detail2main.jsp?itemType=PRODUCT&itemID=1477&iProductID=1477 I think you can get them for sale on ebay too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted August 8, 2009 Author Share Posted August 8, 2009 Something like that would be fun, but I think you are right that it's too young for him. Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pooh bear Posted August 8, 2009 Share Posted August 8, 2009 There are a few online books here I've not read any of them, so I don't know if they will be any good Then there is the Charlotte Mason book, The Counties of England Not all of that book is online yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted August 8, 2009 Author Share Posted August 8, 2009 Thank you. I like the look of the Book of Discovery. Calvin could read a few chapters a week to go with a modern mapping programme. Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stripe Posted August 8, 2009 Share Posted August 8, 2009 I tend to agree with the ladies at Mater Amabilis that old geography books are not the best choice. What about Madam How and Lady Why, at least for those at the younger end? There's Mason's Geographical Readers, but on closer examination this is not the book I thought it was and may be outdated. (These look more advanced than the other I had seen, which seems to be aimed at early elementary students.) Here is her English geography book. I poked around through Google Books and found some truly useless relics that manage to insult the vast majority of the world's population, but I leave it to those who are interested to find those on their own. A much more advanced student could, however, have great fun them. And given that some were written in the mid-1800s, provide virtually no useful information about the Americas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmoira Posted August 8, 2009 Share Posted August 8, 2009 Not countries and capitals, but Guns, Germs & Steel is a good read. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie in MN Posted August 8, 2009 Share Posted August 8, 2009 Any other ideas? Thanks Laura I didn't see anyone mention Exploring Countries & Cultures with MFW. I can't remember if you're secular, Laura, but I love how ECC is all the cultural stuff that you don't get in history. Not countries and capitals, but Guns, Germs & Steel is a good read. Okay, that was a looooong read for me -- are you guys really reading books like that at age 12? I'm going to go hide now. Julie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momco3 Posted August 8, 2009 Share Posted August 8, 2009 What about The Hungry Planet and The Material World? They're not true literature, but photographic + essay based books on a family in each of the countries chosen, with a photo/essay about what they eat each week (hungry) or own (material). I think it gives an amazing glimpse of the world around us in terms of how an individual family in that country lives. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmoira Posted August 8, 2009 Share Posted August 8, 2009 Okay, that was a looooong read for me -- are you guys really reading books like that at age 12? I'm going to go hide now.I read it at 35 or so. :) I know Calvin is an advance reader, otherwise I wouldn't have recommended it for a 12 yo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted August 8, 2009 Author Share Posted August 8, 2009 I read it at 35 or so. :) I know Calvin is an advance reader, otherwise I wouldn't have recommended it for a 12 yo. But more for fiction than nonfiction. He can happily read The Tempest, or David Copperfield on his own, but he practically died getting through A Crack in the Edge of the World, which I found fascinating. I've been meaning to read Guns, Germs and Steel myself though. Thanks Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted August 8, 2009 Author Share Posted August 8, 2009 What about The Hungry Planet and The Material World? They're not true literature, but photographic + essay based books on a family in each of the countries chosen, with a photo/essay about what they eat each week (hungry) or own (material). I think it gives an amazing glimpse of the world around us in terms of how an individual family in that country lives. Calvin probably has a better idea about these things than some kids, as he largely grew up in China, but I've been meaning to look at these. Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted August 8, 2009 Author Share Posted August 8, 2009 I didn't see anyone mention Exploring Countries & Cultures with MFW. I can't remember if you're secular, Laura, but I love how ECC is all the cultural stuff that you don't get in history. I suspect that MFW might not be a good fit for him. Thanks Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stripe Posted August 8, 2009 Share Posted August 8, 2009 I just checked out Material World from the library, and it looks like at least some of the same families as in the Hungry Planet. My favorite page was the line up of toilets; that tells a lot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillieBoy Posted August 8, 2009 Share Posted August 8, 2009 Laura, I know you take a similar approach to geography as I do, from a world view in and secular. I have not found any one geography curricula that fully encompasses what my goals were so I made it up. With a four year rotation in mind I started with year 1- Africa, year 2 -Europe and part of Asia (Middle East), year 3 -Americas, and year 4 -Asia and Rest. We ended up doing a lap book of sorts with many components. I am changing over to a huge binder this year. We used The Geography Coloring Book (not like it sounds) for black maps. I used the Trail Guide as discussion points. We made half/peek sheets for countries and capitals. In the beginning (young) dd would draw and write a postcard from every country to her dad. Latter we changed this to collecting photos online and she enters information into a Photoshop template and prints out “baseball†cards for each country. I taught her how to Google current news events for every country we were “inâ€. As a family we often discuss places over dinner. Our dining table has a map on it covered with a plastic table cloth, not incredibly aesthetic but functional. We would even cook with the cultural flavor of the week. I only required a report on 5 countries the first year and then it is up to 10 for the states. She uses fiction, non-fiction, and internet sources for her reports but must site them as such. She is finishing up year 3 so we did get more intense with the states. She knows all the capitals and countries of Africa without fail, about 90% of Europe, Middle East and Americas. We’re working on 100% mastery. I must say I’m pretty satisfied with the results thus far. She can keep up with world events quite easily and often helps adults with their geography. For the logic stage I plan on just intensifying it, more reports, government, cultural immersion, a lot more reading from native authors, etc. Like you I come from a very well traveled family and I just find this approach almost imperative to even a basic understanding of the world. Some old pictures below Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hannah Posted August 9, 2009 Share Posted August 9, 2009 I have not found any one geography curricula that fully encompasses what my goals were so I made it up. This sounds like an excellent idea! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swimmermom3 Posted August 9, 2009 Share Posted August 9, 2009 Laura, I don't know if this would work for you but it does incorporate Trail Guide to World Geography, Material World, and is secular. We did SL Core 5 for Eastern Hemisphere last year and I needed it seriously tweaked for our world view. HTH. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stripe Posted August 9, 2009 Share Posted August 9, 2009 Is there a good map resource on CD or something, so it could be easily reproducible? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lori in tx Posted August 9, 2009 Share Posted August 9, 2009 Laura, I don't know if this would work for you but it does incorporate Trail Guide to World Geography, Material World, and is secular. We did SL Core 5 for Eastern Hemisphere last year and I needed it seriously tweaked for our world view. HTH. This is great thanks for posting this! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted August 9, 2009 Author Share Posted August 9, 2009 This looks really interesting. I have to run now, but I've bookmarked it and will study it later. Many thanks Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unsinkable Posted August 9, 2009 Share Posted August 9, 2009 http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/ALAN/spring96/schwarz.html Here is an article about reading foreign young adult literture. It has some suggestions that look interesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted August 9, 2009 Author Share Posted August 9, 2009 http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/ALAN/spring96/schwarz.html Here is an article about reading foreign young adult literture. It has some suggestions that look interesting. I'll look into it, thanks. Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colleen in SEVA Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 :lurk5: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie in MN Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 (edited) What about The Hungry Planet and The Material World? They're not true literature, but photographic + essay based books on a family in each of the countries chosen, with a photo/essay about what they eat each week (hungry) or own (material). I think it gives an amazing glimpse of the world around us in terms of how an individual family in that country lives. Along the same lines, I love the books Families of the World. They include so much more than what people eat. Details of families' days include what time they get up in the morning and what different members of the family do all day. The books also include families at different income levels within the same society, so kids don't get the idea that everyone in a country is the same. Julie Edited August 10, 2009 by Julie in MN Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unsinkable Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 I found another set of booklists. If you look on the right, there are lists that read: "books set in africa", "books set in asia", etc. http://info.infosoup.org/lists/AllOneWorld.asp?x=339 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted August 10, 2009 Author Share Posted August 10, 2009 I found another set of booklists. If you look on the right, there are lists that read: "books set in africa", "books set in asia", etc. http://info.infosoup.org/lists/AllOneWorld.asp?x=339 Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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