How to Homeschool World Geography Using Maps and Drawing
World geography isn't an important subject in many American public schools. Considering that we live in a globalized world, it should be. Since schools usually don't teach much geography, it is a subject that parents should step in and teach at home. Many homeschoolers do want to teach geography but good books and curriculums are in short supply.
One effective way to help your children learn about the countries of the world is by drawing, painting and coloring on maps. Most kids love to draw, paint and color, so this can be a fun way to teach geography.
How to Learn the Countries of the World
An easy way to teach world geography is to choose a continent and then learn about the countries in that continent. When you've finished move onto a new continent. Map drawing can be one part of your learning plan and geography curriculum. It helps to have a good atlas with information on each country.
First look for a blank map of the continent or country you are covering using Google searches. On continent maps have your kids color each country a different color and write the name of each country. On country maps, have them color in and label mountain ranges, major rivers, deserts, major forests, grasslands, major cities and climate zones. The amount of detail you want to include will depend on the age of the child. You can expect more detailed maps from a middle or high school age child than a 2nd grader.
It may be helpful to teach your kids about biomes at the same time since they may be coloring them on the maps. Biomes are geographic regions with similar types of climates, flora and fauna like rainforests, deserts, deciduous forests and grasslands. The website eequalsmcq.com has a free elementary biology book that has extensive coverage of biomes.
There are approximately 250 countries in the world, so it will take time to go through all of them. Expect to cover the countries of the world over a few grades. So, if you start in 2nd grade you can expect to finish by approximately 5th grade. You can also do this as part of a middle school or high school geography curriculum.
