Fun Ways to Teach Kids Geography
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Yes - you can make learning Geography FUN!
Do your children know where India is? Or what the capital of Wisconsin is? Do they know where they could see Ayers Rock and what language is spoken in Egypt? As computers and the internet and air travel turn our world into a global village, it is more and more important that we teach kids Geography.
Whether your children are homeschooled or attend public or private schools, the chances are you wish they knew more than they do about countries and people and cultures. And they can. Here are a number of easy ways to teach Geography and make Geography fun .
Note: this lens is aimed at helping parents teach kids Geography or kids teaching themselves, but the Geography Computer Activities could be used in classrooms with computers and the Communicate! section would be a great activity to do with a class. For ideas on activities which can be used by teachers, visit Creative Ways to Teach Continents.
And if you are looking specifically to teach your kids US Geography visit States and Capitals Games.
1. Use the news!
An earthquake and tsunami in Japan, unrest in Egypt or even uncle Joe going on vacation to Barbados - all these events give you the opportunity to teach Geography. Grab a globe or an atlas and get your children to look for the places in the news. Children love a challenge, and each time they do it, they will get a little faster.Of course, this does mean you need a good atlas or globe in your home! Or even a wall map. These items are easy to find at places like Target and Office Depot and don't need to cost a lot.
Globes and atlases on Amazon
Fun contest for kids grades 3-12
FundaFunda's September contest teaches students to use Google earth.
Enter by 30 Sept for a chance to win a Target gift card.
2. Play Your Way Around the World
Fun Geography Board and Card Games
Most kids love games. And there are many great games available that are geography based. Your children will be having so much fun playing that they won't even realize they are learning at the same time. For games focused on US geography visit States and Capitals Games. Here are some favorite games to teach world geography:
Geography Games on eBay
More Geography Games
This is my lens focusing on US geography games which can be used at home or in the classroom. It includes card, board, CD Rom and online games.
For hands-on learning visit Salt Dough Maps
3. Get Gaming!
Fun Geography CD Rom games
Some of my kids favorite computer games are Geography-related - not because they are about geography, but just because they are so much fun. All the ones I am listing were / are played over and over again by my own children.These are all really fun - your kids won't think about them as 'educational' - yet they are. My favorite is Round the World Challenge and I must admit there was a time when I played it for days on end.
Paddington World Mystery Tour is a great geography game for younger kids and Carmen Sandiego CD Rom games are perfect for older elementary and even middle school.
4. Put it Together!
Geography Jigsaw Puzzles
If your family likes jigsaw puzzles, they are a fun way to learn about different states, countries, continents and the world. And working on jigsaw puzzles are also great bonding times as a family. If you have competitive kids, you can also visit the dollar store and buy identical 100 piece map puzzles (I found a USA map puzzle) and make it a race to see who finishes first. Here are some great geography map puzzles; we own the first two.
For more American-themed jigsaw puzzles
Students in grades 4-8 can take part in the Geography Bee
Find more details at
Contests for Students
5. Watch a movie!
Movies which teach Geography
Movies are a great way to experience Geography - you get to 'see' the places and people. There are great documentaries that are very entertaining to watch, or you could watch a movie set in a foreign country. We have a Netflix subscription which gives us access at a very low monthly rate to thousands of excellent DVDs - and of course, some of our favorites, are those related to Geography:
Families of the World DVD series
This is a wonderful series of DVDs aimed at elementary school children. For each country there are two 15 minute segments - each focuses on the average week of a child in that country. One child on each video lives in the city and one lives in a rural area. Great viewing for all ages (my teens always watched along with their younger siblings). My absolute favorite one is Children of Japan. The grannies of both children have the same, very interesting hobby, and you will love the parking garages!
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byA two year old who knows her world geography!!
This is really cute. The dad gives her the name of a country - and she points to it on the map! Show your kids to encourage them that they can learn to do it too!
curated content from YouTube
6. Online fun
Free Online Geography Games
Try out these fun and free geography activities online
- Kids Geo: Geography Games
- This site has games that teach kids the position of continents, countries and capital cities. See which family member can 'place' them in the quickest time. And make sure to also try out the very last game listed which teaches longitude and latitude
- Name the country
- This one is SO challenging! See how many countries you can name in a set time period. Great for competition between siblings - and parents!
- Geography Map Games
- Scroll down the page and find the links under the heading 'Geography Map Games'. Choose which game you want to play and then see how close you can get to finding the place on the map. If you are close enough - you move to the next level. Otherwise you have to start over. Can you make it through all 12 levels? Addicting!
- Where in the World is Mrs Waffenschmidt?
- This is not an online game as such but a clue to where Mrs Waffenschmidt is - and a link to the correct answer. This would work well for a parent / teacher to print out and use as a game
- Map Games
- There are lots of games on this site that cover every part of the world. Games include crosswords, jigsaw puzzles and even a GeoTournament.
7. Travel!
Learn Geography on the go!
There is no better way to learn geography than to see it for yourself. My oldest son will always remember that the Mekong river flows through Laos - because he fell into it! And my youngest knows that the Smoky Mountain National Park is in her home state - because she has visited it.
Explore your town, your state, the neighboring states.
And consider a trip abroad. It is often far less expensive than you would think. One summer we spent a week at a beautiful Caribbean beach in Honduras. The photo here was taken by my teenage son - yes, it really looked like that!
The week's stay only cost us $1000 for a 3-bedroom apartment and as we cooked for ourselves, food costs were hardly more than at home. If you buy air tickets well enough in advance, they can be surprisingly cheap, often cheaper than internal travel in the USA.
Explore your town, your state, the neighboring states.
For tips on planning a road trip visit the US Road Trip lens
And consider a trip abroad. It is often far less expensive than you would think. One summer we spent a week at a beautiful Caribbean beach in Honduras. The photo here was taken by my teenage son - yes, it really looked like that!
The week's stay only cost us $1000 for a 3-bedroom apartment and as we cooked for ourselves, food costs were hardly more than at home. If you buy air tickets well enough in advance, they can be surprisingly cheap, often cheaper than internal travel in the USA.
Fun Geography Merchandise
8. Watch the Amazing Race show
Geography on TV
This is my family's favorite TV show. If you aren't familiar with it, teams race around the world, following clues and performing challenges. This is the next best thing to visiting the places yourself. Watch the current series on TV, catch past episodes of the current season or purchase previous seasons. If you are already fans, buy the Amazing Race DVD game. It is great fun to play. And there is also a board game out.
9. Communicate!
A great way to learn about other countries is to communicate with the people living there. You could look for pen pals for your children. This will give them an in depth knowledge about a specific country. Or you could sign up with Postcrossing and receive postcards from all over the world.
All you do is sign up - and yes, it is free - and you will receive an address in another country. Send them a postcard with your special code on it and when they receive it, they enter your code into the system - and someone sends you a postcard.
Buy a wall map and let your kids use map tacks to mark the spot each postcard comes from. If you have younger children it may be wise to pay a bit more for your map and get a laminated one.And buy a memory box to keep all the postcards in.
All you do is sign up - and yes, it is free - and you will receive an address in another country. Send them a postcard with your special code on it and when they receive it, they enter your code into the system - and someone sends you a postcard.
Buy a wall map and let your kids use map tacks to mark the spot each postcard comes from. If you have younger children it may be wise to pay a bit more for your map and get a laminated one.And buy a memory box to keep all the postcards in.
World Wall Map Deluxe Laminated
10. Read all about it!
Books that teach Geography
There are some excellent children and teen books that are set in foreign countries. If your children enjoy reading, or if you read-aloud to them try some of these suggestions. You will probably find them in your local public library. These are picture books and suitable for ages 4-10.
11. Sing Geography Songs
Some of my kids enjoyed learning through songs - some didn't so let your children listen to the songs first to see if they will actually learn from them. But if they do enjoy them, it is a very effective way for them to learn.
So, what do you think? Any other ideas of ways to make Geography fun?
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Nicole Smith
Feb 7, 2012 @ 4:50 pm | delete
- I recently bought a plush toy with the shape of Mexico to my daughter and she loves it. I like to point out to her the place where we are going to enjoy our holidays next month. Lately she always sleeps with the plush.
In case you are interested, yoy can get them at www.plushkies.com
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waldenthree.net
Jan 20, 2012 @ 9:10 am | delete
- Geography, important subject as celebrating ethnic voices ! Congrads on reaching Squidoo level 56. Going for next level. Will visit again soon. what is geography ? Thanks.
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MareeT
Nov 30, 2011 @ 3:25 pm | delete
- Great ideas and great lens!! Your hard work is appreciated!
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Ohohdon
Nov 10, 2011 @ 9:10 pm | delete
- As a child, i was a stamp collector. When I would acquire a stamp from another place, I always made it a point to find out where that place was. For me, I learned more about the world from collecting stamps than from any other activity.
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Big Earth Explorers
Nov 7, 2011 @ 9:59 am | delete
- I love all the ideas!
It might also be fun to have kids trace their own interests around the world. Sport fans can look up national soccer teams around the world (almost every country has one) while dance students might want to try learning a new traditional dance from each region of the world.
Love the postcard idea as well. There is actually another organization that teams up with teachers to send postcards to kids and classrooms back in the states. It's a great way to do a postcard exchange but also a way to support local schools and tie it all back to learning about world cultures - the site is http://www.BigEarthExplorers.com
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by merylvdm
merylvdm
I am a South African, who was born in England and is now living in the USA. I have traveled extensively since I was 3 years old - which developed my l... more »
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Amazon Price: (as of 02/16/2012)
A new game that plays like Brainbox: Around the World - a real fun way to learn Geography.
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