Those who have done Trail Guide to World Geography...help please

[Maryam]

I'll be using this for the first time this year with both my 8th and 4th grade daughters. I would greatly appreciate it if anyone who has done this curriculum can answer my questions.

1- Can I do it with them together even though the questions they answer are different? If so, suggestions on how?

2- How can I do it on two days? I'll mainly be doing the questions, mapping, and vocabulary.

3- Do they memorize the maps they do?

[Maryam]

Anyone? Please? [emoji4]

 

 

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[OneStepAtATime]

I have used this but I don't recall details that would help you with the questions you are asking.  I used it with one child.  She did it 4 days a week.  She did not memorize any maps but learned the material through exposure in different ways.

 

I don't see why you couldn't do it with two children at once.  The questions are usually related in some way, even if different levels are available.  The area that might become troublesome is if they both need to use the same reference book and aren't terribly good at waiting/sharing.  I will also say that I adjusted the questions.  I didn't just only do one set of questions that the book had designated as appropriate for my age child.  I read ahead and picked questions I thought would be appropriate for my specific child.  I typed out the questions ahead of time and had them in a folder ready to go for the week.

 

As for compressing it into just two days, you could do that.  The lessons would no longer be relatively short but certainly if you have the additional time to commit to it you could easily do two days worth of lessons on the first day and two days worth of lessons on the 2nd day you have scheduled for this.

 

FWIW, I love this system but it required me to pull from many different resources which required a lot more prep ahead of time than I actually wanted to devote to it.  I eventually dropped the program but it is very well done.

[SilverMoon]

You could do the mapping and rabbit trails together and the questions independently, or just skip the questions.

There are four days of questions, one day of mapping, and random amounts of rabbit trails. It wouldn't be difficult to do in two days. Just pick the parts you want to do and assign them a day.

I don't remember memory assignments. You could add them yourself if you wanted. Or just play on Sheppherd Software games regularly. ;)

[alisha]

1. When we did it, I had one child doing the easiest questions and one doing the middle level. But I had them both do the easiset ones at the same time, and then just added an additional question for the older, so I guess you could do them together. 

2. II think you could easily do it in 2 days. We did a whole week's worth of questions in one sitting, then the map another day.

3. There is no memorization involved as it is written, you might be able to add something, though.

 

I basically see it as an atlas scavenger hunt.We mainly focused on the questions and mapping. And I just found free maps online that would work instead of purchasing the book they suggest. 

[OneStepAtATime]

There are some wonderful projects they offer and some other options but basically you take all the various resources and weave your own tapestry out of it.  You choose.  You can choose which questions to use, which resources to use, which projects to do, etc.  You could make it very robust and intense or make it a quicky light geography run through or something in between.

 

This system can seem overwhelming.  There are a lot of things it offers.  Don't try to do all of it even if all of it sounds awesome.  I suggest before starting you read through the guide a few times, kind of wrap your brain around how it works, then write out a loose light plan.  Walk away.  Come back a couple of days later, read through your plan and see what you might want to tweak.  Keep it simple those first couple of weeks.  Get everything ready and start.  Run with the simpler version for a couple of weeks while you and the kids get their Trail Guides legs then revisit all the resources and see if you want to add in anything else or rearrange what you are doing.  Don't let it run you.  You run it.

 

Best wishes.