Geography Activities for Kids
There are many exciting ways to help kids explore and learn about the world. It is important to teach your children about the world around us, and it's never too early to start. There are activities you can start as early as 2 years old. If your children seem ready to grasp concepts at an early age, you should jump on the opportunity and go with it. There are teachable moments every day as you go about your usual routines. Take those and expand on them depending on the age of your children and their level of understanding.
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Activities
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Instead of jumping into latitude and longitude, start with a simple grid system. You could make a map of your neighborhood, using simple drawings and adding a basic grid system. Label the bottom of the grid with letters, and the left side, or axis, with numbers. Then show your kids how the system works. For example, look on your map and see where your house is. If it falls in F2, show them how you match up the letters and numbers.
Ask your children what country they're interested in. Then you can find a pen pal for them to communicate with. There are several pen pal websites where you can monitor their communication with each other. Make sure you have your parent's permission before joining one of the groups. One example is the following website www.studentsoftheworld.
Have the children color each country of a blank map a different color. Take a blank United States map, and try to locate the states and capitals.
Look at a globe, and discuss with your kids where they think the coldest and warmest places to live are. Ask them why they think this. Help guide them in their discovery.
Research different cultures from around the world. You could pick a different country or region each week and do research online or at the library by checking out books about your region. Cook meals that are common to the culture your kids picked out so the kids can get a feel of what that culture is like. You could talk about the differences between their country and yours. How do the people get around? Do they walk, ride a bike or take the bus? What do kids do for fun?
Have a discussion with your kids about where things come from. Ask your kids how they think the food and supplies get to the store.
Another discussion you could have with your children is about the mail system. Talk about what happens when you mail a letter. This could tie in to the pen pal activity.
Geography is all around us, so have fun discovering right along with your children.
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