Posted by Cindy on April 28, 2010
One of the end-of-the-year writing projects I gave the kids was to research any country of interest around the world and create a report and presentation.
Mahayla chose Uganda since her Sunday school class sponsors a child from Uganda through Holt International. The project became very personal and worthwhile for her as she learned more about the area where her little friend, Ruth, lives.
Caleb chose South Africa since we recently learned about Apartheid and Nelson Mandela during our 20th century history studies. The project helped him distinguish between a current day country and how it is alike and different from the United States.
I only gave a few parameters for the reports/projects:
- The report needed to include nice-sized paragraphs, correct grammar/punctuation/spelling, and be more than simple facts. In other words, I wanted them to infuse a little opinion into the information, too.
- They had to include at least the following topics, but could include others if desired: where in the world (maps), a brief history, current day culture such as food, clothing, homes, etc., things that are native to the country such as animals and crops, how Christianity is accepted and what other religions are popular, and if any famous missionaries ever worked there.
- The project board needed to be colorful and visually pleasing, as well as providing the audience something to look at as the presentation was made.
I continue to be amazed at how much ownership my children take in their learning when preparing for a project!
Posted by Cindy on September 1, 2009
We had a great time studying United States geography. Below are the resources we used – all fantastic!
US Geography
Free Online Resources
Games to Learn States, Capitals and Landforms
Various US Geography Games
Where Is That? Game
Game that Promotes Speed in Recognizing States
We took some time to learn about famous national landmarks during the unit, too. For a final project, I gave the kids a list of several landmarks from which they had to choose eight to research. They created informational postcards to highlight what they learned. You can see the front of each postcard shows a picture and the name of the landmark. On the back, they had to write a paragraph of interesting information for each. It was a simple project, but a nice way to ease into the new year.
Posted by Cindy on January 21, 2007
We did it! Well, I guess you could say we (the four of us) AND two sets of grandparents did it!! Yes, it took eight people in all to finish this puzzle.
Now that we know the tricks to the puzzle, it will probably be easier the next time around.
It’s a wonderful puzzle for learning all the countries of the world and I would highly recommend it. Just be sure to place it on a table you won’t need for awhile (unless you have eight people available to work on it at one time!)
