Outdoor Geography
Can you identify a state or country from its outline? Are you able to fit the states or provinces of your country together? Try it outdoors—on a giant, colorful map!
1. What is your state or country’s shape? Does it have a distinctive border or an unusual shoreline? Do you know where key areas are located? Can you identify where you live?
2. Ask your teacher to help you find a safe, large area outside to draw your map. Start by drawing your state or other area that you are studying with Crayola Giant Sidewalk Chalk. Fill the space with color.
3. Ask a classmate to draw and color a bordering geographic area with a different color.
4. Continue mapping and filling the regions with color. See how much of the country or world you can draw from memory. Look at an atlas to check on details.
5. Can your classmates identify the geographic area you created? Add visual clues or words if necessary until they figure out what you drew.
Adult supervision is required for any arts & crafts project. Observe children closely and intervene as necessary to prevent potential safety problems and ensure appropriate use of arts and crafts materials. Some craft items, particularly beads and buttons, are potential choking hazards for young children. Avoid use of such small parts with children younger than 3 years. Craft items such as scissors, push pins and chenille sticks may have sharp points or edges. Avoid use of materials with sharp points by children younger than 4 years. Read all manufacturers' safety warnings before using arts and craft supplies.
Outdoor Crafts—Choose safe outdoor areas, away from traffic and dangerous equipment. Close adult supervision is required.
- What are some of the reasons why countries, provinces, and states are shaped the way they are? Find out how borders were created.
- Discuss why it is important to recognize geographic shapes without words or other identifying marks.
- Start a graph of names of states and countries that are shaped like other things. For example, some people the country of Italy resembles a boot.
- Assessment: Are student’s outlines accurate? Could students identify neighboring areas? Were the maps color coded?
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