map skills before geography?

[greenmamato3]

anybody feel that map skills via something like Daily Geography by Evan Moor is a necessary precursor to geography studies? i'm planning to use Child's Geography for my DS and DD (age 7 and 5) ... wondering if i should have the younger do Map Skills first. DS "gets it" nturally.

[Dinsfamily]

I don't know if you should skip it or not, but wanted to let you know that Evan Moor does have a beginning map skills book. They've revamped their beginning geography series from 3 workbooks into 1 this year, but you can still get them separately on Amazon. I did all three with my 5yo this year and he loved the map skills book...well actually, he loved all three. He even had his grandpa making treasure maps for him to follow with his compass. It's a pretty gentle intro and doesn't take much time.

[greenmamato3]

thanks. anyone else? the daily geo series is just really really easy .... wondering if map skills is a "good thing" to continue {alongside the geography studies with mommy} even if it is "too" easy....

 

i'm going to look into the geo skills for DS, like you suggested

[Dana]

I'm liking these books. It's easy, but it gives a good background. Then we're seeing the real world map skills when planning road trips (reading road map) and we look things up on the historical atlas as we do history. I think it'll be enough.

[Tracy]

I think it is going to depend on the child, but we just threw a big map on the wall, and my dd4 has just run with it, not needing any instruction on map skills but just learning as she goes. I think it makes more sense to learn mapping skills as they are relevant to what you're doing.

[GoVanGogh]

DS8 has been fixated on maps since he was ~2 years old. I have bought/used nearly every "map" workbook on the market, but DS enjoys the series from Modern Curriculum Press the best.

http://rainbowresource.com/product/Communities%3A+Level+C/008890/1266174050-932108

Each grade/level has a different set of skills and can easily be used at a child's own pace. (I did find that Level D had more advanced math, but nothing too difficult.)

Level A The Places Around Me, Level B Neighborhoods, Level C Communities, Level D States and Regions, Level E United States and its Neighbors, Level F Eastern Hemisphere, Level G The World and Level H United States Past and Present. The series can be utilized according to the grade level listed on the Rainbow Resource Center website or at your child's own pace.

[sleepymommy]

We're using Down to Earth Geography. We've only done the first few lessons, but like it so far.

http://www.amazon.com/Down-Earth-Geography-Grade-1/dp/1420692712

 

It includes map skills along with basic geography.

[greenmamato3]

thanks, gals.

i think what i've decided for right now is to have him finish off the Daily Geography 1st Grade this week, one "week" per day ... he's in lesson 33 and there are 36. it's SOOOOOO easy. today he did two weeks worth of questions in 10 min, and he's *NOT* a particularly fast worker typically.

 

so i am going to have him work through independently a book like one of these that moves at a bit of a faster clip OR has more breadth to the subject matter than the Evan Moor books do.

 

http://rainbowresource.com/pictures/007971/1266174050-932108

 

http://rainbowresource.com/product/Complete+Book+of+Maps+%26amp%3B+Geography+Gr+3-6/008117/1266174050-932108

 

i'll have my daughter start through the one the first reply PP suggested...nice and gentle for her right brain :) i think it was Map SKills for Today.

 

i think i'm just going to start working through the Child's Geography from Knowledge Quest as our "formal" geography time together ... the workbooks are just constructive busy work :)