Jamie Freeland
3rd/4th Grade Teacher
Geography
October 07, 2011
Room 12 has fully launched our first Social Studies unit on Geography! We will learn all about maps before zooming in on California and it's distinctive landscape.
We began our studies by becoming cartographers ourselves. We carefully mapped our school to understand the challengest that face map-makers. We answered critical questions: what do we include? How do I translate what I see into a drawing? How do I make the sizes/shapes of buildings and objects look right? How do I color the map so that it's easy for someone to read?
We started by sketching what we know about the school. Then we took ourselves on a tour, filling in the "blanks" on our sketches; adding and changing things along the way. We returned to the classroom and worked with partners to create a final draft of our maps. We folded the paper to divide the space. We used pencils and sharpeners like blocks to "build" the campus and trace it. We used color to separate spaces and buildings, then added labels, and some even included a legend!
As we move forward in Geography, we have learned about the cardinal and intermediate directions. We proved that the North Field really is in the north by making our own compasses out of paper clips and magnets. Ask your child WHY this works - they should be able to tell you all about it!
Some of the other map skills we are learning:
- How to read a compass rose on a map
- What are hemispheres?
- Latitude and longitude
Next we will shift our focus to California Geography and get to know its 4 main regions: the coast, central valley, mountains, and desert. We learn where the capital is as well as other major cities. We learn how each region influences industry and the development of cities. In the last 2 weeks of October, we will express all of our learning by creating 3-dimensional maps of California out of salt dough. We love to have you join us if you would like to help us form the maps and paint them!
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