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Overview:
In this lesson, students practice their knowledge of the cardinal directions by having them describe the directions in their classroom. Students will practice figuring out the relative directions of other places (such as another classroom or the office) in relation to their classroom. They will conclude by taping signs with place names around the room to show the directions they would travel to get to those places.
Connections to the Curriculum:
Geography, language arts
Connections to the National Geography Standards:
Standard 1: "How to use maps and other geographic representations, tools, and technologies to acquire, process, and report information from a spatial perspective"
Standard 2: "How to use mental maps to organize information about people, places, and environments in a spatial context"
Time:
Two to three hours
Materials Required:
- Computer with Internet access
- Wall map of the United States or the world
- Construction paper
- Crayons or markers
- Signs with "NORTH," "SOUTH," "EAST," and "WEST" written on them, posted on the appropriate walls of the classroom
Objectives:
Students will
- point out north on a map;
- point to the directions in their classroom;
- describe the direction of other places in relation to their classroom;
- look at a map and explain the directions they would need to travel to get to various places;
- practice their skills at the Xpeditions Get Oriented activity; and
- post signs around the classroom indicating the directions to various places in their town, the country, or the world.
Geographic Skills:
Acquiring Geographic Information
Organizing Geographic Information
Answering Geographic Questions
S u g g e s t e d P r o c e d u r e
Opening:
Hold up a map of the United States or the world, and ask students if they know which way is north. If any students know, have them show the rest of the class. Also show the class the location of their school on the map, or have a student point it out.
Development:
Ask students if they know which way is north in the classroom, and, if they don't, point it out to them. Have the class point north, south, east, and west in the classroom until you are comfortable that everyone knows the directions.
Post signs with the directions on each of the classroom walls. Ask students questions such as "Whose classroom is directly to the south of us?" or "Which direction is the main office from here?"
Point to a position on the map, such as South America, and ask students to point to the direction they would need to travel to reach that place. Do this several times for different places on the map so that students begin to see the relationship between the directions represented by the map and the real directions they can point to in the classroom.
Closing:
Have students practice their new directional skills on the Orientometer at the Xpeditions activity, Get Oriented.
Suggested Student Assessment:
Give students (or have them make) signs with the names of places to the north, south, east, and west of their school. These places can be local, such as a shopping mall, or international, such as South America.
Give each student or pair of students one sign, and ask them to figure out (using the map or their knowledge of the town) which classroom wall their sign belongs on. One by one, have students tape their signs onto the appropriate walls. For an additional challenge, have them include northeast, northwest, southeast, and southwest.
Extending the Lesson:
Discuss the reasons why it's important to be familiar with directions. Why do students think these skills might be helpful?
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