geography

[ProudGrandma]

Does anybody teach geography as part of their curriculm? I am considering this:

 

Amazon.com: Galloping The Globe (Geography Matters) (9781931397384): Loree Pettit, Dari Mullins: Books

 

anyone use this??

[Heather in AL]

I bought it and tried it, but we didn't finish it. It's written for young children, and my dc totally rebelled when I had them use it. They were 9 and 11 at the time. I used it for two weeks before I finally sold it. I don't know how old your kids are, but I thought I'd throw that out there.

 

We switched to Trail Guide to World Geography and they loved it. I loved it, too. I was able to pick and choose what I wanted to print off the CD~~sometimes I wanted to go into more depth, and other times, I just thought a 'glossing over' would suffice. In fact, I plan to use the high school portion next year for my 10th grader.

 

HTH!

[meet me in paris]

I agree with Heather; unless your children are really young, Trail Guide is much better, and you can use it multiple times on different levels.

[ProudGrandma]

so, would I need more than this:

Details for Trail Guide to World Geography (014495) - Rainbow Resource Center, Inc.

 

or will this do it for me???

[HootyTooty]

Here is their website:

http://www.geomatters.com/

[ProudGrandma]

Here is their website:

http://www.geomatters.com/

 

yes, but what do I NEED to buy...those are all wonderful options, but I can't afford everything they have to offer, so what books do I need to effectively teach to my 9, 8, and 5 year old??

 

Thanks.

 

Kathy

[AngelaNYC]

Does anybody teach geography as part of their curriculm?

 

Following Ambleside Online, we use a living books approach to geography and we're reading Tree in the Trail and Seabird this year. We also use maps when doing history and literature readings, locating all the places we read about. And we use a book called "The Complete Book of Maps & Geography (Grades 3-6)" that ds does once a week (a page or 2). Inexpensive and it works for us.

[Caitilin]

Depending on whether you and your kids are artistic, you might like Mapping the World with Art, by Ellen J. McHenry.

[HootyTooty]

yes, but what do I NEED to buy...those are all wonderful options, but I can't afford everything they have to offer, so what books do I need to effectively teach to my 9, 8, and 5 year old??

 

Thanks.

 

Kathy

I would buy the Trail Guide to World Geography along with the student pages. I have found that on the for sale board there is always someone selling their copy for a nice price.

 

Also I am told Evan Moor makes nice Geography material that can be supplemented with living books.

[Heather in AL]

Hi Kathy,

 

Since your kids are on the younger side, they might just like Galloping the Globe. From what I remember, it's cartoonish and has a coloring book feel. My kids never liked coloring books (yeah, I know, the horror, eh?), which was why they rebelled with the program.

 

On the other hand, your olders might prefer the feel of Trail Guide.

 

Should you decide on the Trail Guide curric., you have a few choices. One is to buy the Primary CD for 2nd-4th grades and the teacher's book: http://www.geomatters.com/products/details.asp?ID=6 The cost for those would be $36.95. The CD has the maps and workbook pages, and you just decide what you want to print out. A better deal is to buy the CD that encompasses the entire K-12 for $35 instead of the Primary one, but that makes the program more pricey for you.

 

In addition to the CD and teacher's book, you will need an atlas. The one I got way back when was a simple Rand McNally Atlas (for kids or something like that) that I picked up from Barnes & Noble for about $10. Not everything we needed was in there, but the kids didn't suffer for it, as the internet found those obscure rivers, etc. for us. :001_smile: I don't know if the Primary program has you read books, but if so, they should be found at your library (Around the World in 80 Days, for ex.) Oh, you can buy an atlas at the GeoMatters site, too, if you wish.

 

What I would do is to visit the GeoMatters link that HootyTooty provided and look at the samples of each program and see which one would best for your kids' needs.

[Embassy]

Does anybody teach geography as part of their curriculm? I am considering this:

 

Amazon.com: Galloping The Globe (Geography Matters) (9781931397384): Loree Pettit, Dari Mullins: Books

 

anyone use this??

 

I was planning on using this, but ended up making up my own unit studies on various countries. So far we have gone through North America and Europe.

[MtnTeaching]

I am probably the last person who should be answering you on this if you're watching your pennies. I used to be a flight attendant and geography is a passion of mine. We incorporate it into everything we do and are currently doing a three year, around the world study. We're in Europe right now and Rick Steves is practically a part of the family. I DVR all of his shows.

 

I have older kids (11 & 13) and we use the Trial Guide to World Geography as our foundation, but I supplement with so many other sources I would have to start another thread. The kids have put together beautiful notebooks that are getting bigger and bigger.

 

Geography can be an absolute blast if not done in a boring, dry fashion. If you do decide on the Trail Guide to World Geography, it would be nice to have an atlas for them. As mentioned earlier, Rand McNally has inexpensive "Schoolhouse" World Atlas'. They have an intermediate for ages 9+ and one for the younger ones, also.

 

We found that a good World Cookbook is fun to have on hand although you can get them from the library or look some recipes up on the internet. We also have enjoyed "Geography through Art", but once again you can get books like this from the library. My library also has a series called "How to Draw Sights and Symbols of (name of country)". It's an awesome way to get that art done!

 

Good luck in what ever you decide for geography! There's so much available out there that doesn't cost a thing.