Take your students on a world tour with literature!
Objectives
Students read and discuss a new story or book each day. Students plot the locations
of the story or book on a world map or globe.
Keywords
geography, mapping, literature, tour, globe
Materials Needed
teacher-selected children's or young-adult literature, a world map or
a globe, markers or pushpins
Lesson Plan
Suggestion: Students can learn much about the world by reading literature that takes place in other locales. Use this lesson to start a world literature read-aloud month in your classroom.
Each day, have students read aloud a new book or story. Discuss where the story takes place.
Call on students to plot the locations of the story or book on a world map or globe using markers or pushpins.
Following are some classic children's titles that work well with this activity. Supplement the list with your own favorite titles!
The Story of Ferdinand, by Munro Leaf (Spain) Strega Nona, by Tomie de Paola (Italy) Little Red Riding Hood, by Brothers Grimm (Germany) Madeline, by Ludwig Bemelmans (France) Paddington Bear, by Michael Bond (Peru) The Little Mermaid, by Hans Christian Andersen (Denmark) Heidi, by Johanna Spyri (Switzerland) The Story About Ping, by Margerie Flack (China) Katy No-Pocket, by Emmy Payne (Australia) Anansi the Spider, (a folktale from Ghana)
Extension 1: If they plot the locations on a map, students can extend a piece of yarn from the map to a display of each book cover. Extension 2: Each day, select a different student to draw a picture of the cover or illustrate a scene from the book read. Then extend a piece of yarn from the map to the student's picture.
Assessment
Observe how well students read and discuss each book or story. Evaluate students'
abilities to correctly pinpoint a location on a map or globe.
