Parrothead Posted April 6, 2011 Share Posted April 6, 2011 If you were looking for a year-long upper middle school world geography course what would you like to see? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom-ninja. Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 Ease of use and laid out plans. :D Built in memory work Cultural study along with geographic study Book list of suggested supplemental reading Map reading skills Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HSMom2One Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 I was very seriously considering Runkle's Welcome to the Wonderful World of Geography for dd in 7th grade next year, but I am going to have to save it for later in 8th or 9th grade instead. It looks like a solid program from what I can tell, and Cathy Duffy gave it a very positive review if that means anything to you personally. I still can't wait to get my hands on the set to see in person.Blessings, Lucinda Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HSMom2One Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 I was so enthused about the Runkle recommendation that I left out a lot of what I meant to say in response to your question. What I'd be looking for in a good geography curriculum would be something that is engaging, visually appealing, and full of fascinating facts that go beyond mere memorization of materials. I'd like to have it explain more about our planet's physical features in a way that fills in what a physical science course does not teach. I'd like it to cover both basic and more advanced geography terms and vocabulary, and a good amount of map work each week. I've always thought it would be fun to dig a little bit into the history of cartography. Maybe there could be a little side road in that area somewhere in the mix. Blessings, Lucinda Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 Kilts around the world. Duh. :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TN Mama Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 Kilts around the world. Duh. :lol: Speaking of visually appealing. In all seriousness, I'd love a geography curriculum that is secular, with wonderful pictures and basically everything else Kleine Hexe previously mentioned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liza Q Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 Ease of use and laid out plans. :D Built in memory work Cultural study along with geographic study Book list of suggested supplemental reading Map reading skills This. I like Runkle's text but it has no cultural geography. I am going crazy trying to create something for geography next year :001_huh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted April 7, 2011 Author Share Posted April 7, 2011 Thanks everyone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karen in CO Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 Thanks everyone. Are you writing a geography program or shopping for one? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TN Mama Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 Are you writing a geography program or shopping for one? :bigear: Yes, inquiring minds and all. Or just being nosy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted April 7, 2011 Author Share Posted April 7, 2011 Sort of, maybe writing one. Kinda. Just a little. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karen in CO Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 Very Cool. In that case, I'd like folk tales and pictures of regional artwork with the cultural stuff. Memorization planned into it will be terrific too. An occaisional recipe and a list for further reading would be icing. How the geography has influenced the culture. What is the main religion and major industries..... Written to the student. Weekly plans. Secular please. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woolybear Posted April 26, 2011 Share Posted April 26, 2011 Written to the student. Weekly plans. Secular please. And a pre printed student workbook that includes maps to be studied, others to be filled in, maybe some questions but not a lot. (A lot of the programs I like the look of have me printing everything off a cd-rom or e-book. I don't want to have to print it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom22ns Posted April 26, 2011 Share Posted April 26, 2011 What I really wanted for middle school geography and never found: Memorization of countries (most if not all of them) Learning about geographical land formations, terminology and memorizing major ones (mountains, seas, oceans, deserts, peninsulas, etc) Cultural study and reading paired with each region. I did my own. All the things people have said about visually appealing, interesting writing, and so on apply. My number one frustration was not being able to find the content that I wanted though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted April 26, 2011 Share Posted April 26, 2011 Some kind of overlay maps. There is more to geography than just what the earth looks like and where borders are. There is also the human geography, and natural resources, etc. So if each unit had the same map, the same size, with a lot of versions that could be put on top of each other--population densities, geological features, natural resources, cultural affinity groups, etc.--that would make it a lot easier to remember things and also to see cross-border issues (like the Kurds in both Turkey and Iraq, for instance.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted April 26, 2011 Share Posted April 26, 2011 I love geography, but never found anything I adored. I would want (in a perfect world): 1. pre-printed, no need to copy (permission given to copy within a family) 2. product that would work with any atlas or resource. Trail Guide was good, but if you didn't have their specific rec it was harder to find the exact information they wanted. 3. cultural geography included. I have a high school geography book and it includes a very politically correct blurb at the front of each section. It was about a student from the country. I would prefer folk tales or fairy tales from each country. Oxford has these nice story books from several parts of the world. 4. Maybe an open type of research project. A way to do with any country or region. 5. For younger children, something they could build as a book. When we studied the US, ds made a book about the state bird of each state. It was cute. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanaryMelody Posted April 26, 2011 Share Posted April 26, 2011 Arts/Crafts, kid-friendly recipes, or something hands-on for each region/country. My almost 13yo DD learns in a very hands-on way. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cschnee Posted April 27, 2011 Share Posted April 27, 2011 Based on the 5 themes of geography. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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