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This resource book is intended to aid parents of children aged 2 to 5 years in teaching geography. The book offers ideas about how to encourage and give direction to enable young children to develop the vocabulary, awareness, and curiosity necessary to lay the foundation for the study of geography. Suggested activities are included and are organized around five specific themes. The themes are: (1) "Where are things located?" (2)"What characteristics make a place special?" (3) "What are the relationships among people and places?" (4) "What are the patterns of movement of people, products, and information?" and (5) "How can the Earth be divided into regions for study?" Each chapter begins with background, examples of questions geographers ask, and explanations of the early developmental skills that are involved. A 16-item reference list and glossary conclude the book, along with maps, a resource list with suggestions of where to get free maps, and a list of easy reading or picture books related to geography. (LB)

This booklet provides practical learning activities for parents to use in teaching geography to children under the age of 10. The handbook is organized around the five major themes of geography: (1) physical location; (2) physical and human characteristics of places; (3) relationships among people and places; (4) patterns of movement of people, products, and information; and (5) formation and change of regions. These themes are articulated in a wide variety of activities designed for parent/child participation. These activities include map making and map reading, individual field trips, craft activities, and weather watching. By using these activities parents can connect everyday learning experiences in the home and neighborhood to the curriculum in school. They also can direct the natural curiosity of children toward questions and knowledge in geography. In addition, this profusely illustrated handbook contains a glossary of geographic terms and lists of sources for acquiring free or inexpensive materials. A suggested reading list is provided, as well as, Internet resource addresses, and recommended computer software. (MJP)

Providing practical learning activities for parents to use to teach geography to children under age 10, this profusely illustrated handbook is organized in terms of 5 major themes of geography: (1) physical location; (2) physical and human characteristics of places; (3) relationships among people and places; (4) patterns of movement of people, products, and information; and (5) formation and change of regions. These five themes, developed by the Joint Committee on Geographic Education of the National Council for Geographic Education and the American Association of Geographers, have recently been adopted by many U.S. schools. By using this handbook, parents can connect everyday learning experiences in the home and neighborhood to the curriculum in school. They can also direct the natural curiosity of children toward questions and knowledge in geography. In addition to the learning activities for children, the handbook contains a glossary of geographic terms, lists of sources for acquiring free or inexpensive materials, and a list of books for children on various topics in physical and cultural geography. Supporting materials include an outline map of the United States and a press release and publication announcement concerning the contents and uses of this handbook. (JP)

This volume presents a framework for developing courses of study in geography at grade levels 7-12. Several sample courses illustrate how the framework may be used. Five fundamental themes in geographic education provide the basis for the framework. The suggested learning opportunities are designed to incorporate various levels of thinking. These opportunities direct attention to the knowledge, skills, and attitudes that result in a total geography course. The fundamental themes for geographic education are: (1) Location: position on the Earth's surface; (2) Place: physical and human characteristics; (3) Relationships within places: humans and environments; (4) Movement: humans interacting on the Earth; and (5) Regions: how they form and change. The cognitive skills that are developed in these courses are grouped as follows: asking geographic questions; acquiring geographic information; presenting geographic data; interpreting and analyzing geographic information; developing and testing hypotheses and geographic generalizations. A glossary of selected terms and a list of references are included. (DB)

This geography textbook assessment is a tool and a guide for teachers and curriculum administrators who are responsible for adopting classroom geography materials. The assessment's goal is to help teachers identify the geography textbooks that are most compatible with the content goals of the geography education reform movement as stated in "The Guidelines for Geographic Education" (Joint Committee on Geographic Education 1984); "Geography Framework for the National Assessment of Educational Progress" (National Assessment Governing Board, U.S. Department of Education 1991); and "Geography for Life: National Geography Standards" (National Geography Standards Project 1994). Eleven textbooks for this project, including six high school, one middle school, and two special education textbooks, as well as two other non-traditional curriculum materials adaptable for classroom use, were evaluated and reviewed by a committee through the use of standardized evaluation criteria and a scoring rubric to achieve this objective assessment. The assessments were conducted using the student edition of each textbook. Supplemental ancillary materials, available for only some of the textbooks, were not considered. The 11 textbooks assessed were: "Geography, People and Places in a Changing World" (English); "Global Geography" (Finkelstein, Flanagan, Lunger); "World Cultures: A Global Mosaic" (Ahmad, Brodsky, Crofts, Ellis); "World Geography" (Boehm); "World Geography, A Global Perspective" (Baerwald, Fraser); "World Geography Today" (Helgren, Sager); "Geography, The World and Its People" (Boehm, Armstrong, Hunkins); "Fearon's United States Geography" (Lefkowitz); "Fearon's World Geography and Cultures" (Kelly); "Activities and Readings in the Geography of the United States (ARGUS)" (Gersmehl); and "Britannica Global Geography System (BGGS)" (Hill, Dunn, Klein). Contains 21 references. (CB)

This document includes the September 1978 Population Education Newsletter and a module containing background information, data sheets, and tips to help teachers develop a one or two hour lesson on population density and mobility in the United States. The module, which comprises the bulk of the document, is intended to encourage high school and college students to clarify their concepts of density, analyze changing migration patterns, consider the role of agriculture in an urban society, and plan for the future in a more populated society. Teaching procedure is outlined in a step-by-step manner, although it is stressed that steps may be followed selectively, depending upon which data sheets are used. Discussion questions are suggested, where appropriate. Examples are, "What accounts for the wide variation in population density between various states?""Do you think the land needed for urban living will increase in the future as the population grows?" Students are involved in activities including filling in questionnaires, interpreting charts, maps, and graphs, and completing work sheets. The data sheets focus on population density in the United States as a whole and state by state, land use in the United States in various years and regions, population and area of foreign countries, migration by regions in the United States during selected years, and possible future distribution of the United States population. The newsletter focuses on U.S. land use and suggests land use teaching aids. It also offers population news items and announces new population materials. (DB)

Intended as a current statement for improving geographic education, these guidelines suggest major changes needed to counteract a prevailing illiteracy in geography among U.S. citizens. A preface and problem statement provide a rationale for including geography education as a subject of study in the schools and as a scientific mode of inquiry. A section on the content and process of geographic education (1) demonstrates how geographic education focuses on five central themes (location, place, relationships within places, movement, and regions), how these themes recur and are amplified throughout the curriculum, and how they should be represented in the various levels of our schools; (2) suggests how schools can integrate these themes; (3) identifies the knowledge, skills, and perspectives students should gain from a systematic program in geographic education; and (4) suggests a variety of approaches to geography that each theme might imply. The following section, "The Place of Geography in the Curriculum," deals with the value of geographic inquiry, geography's relationship to other subjects, and geography as preparation for a career. In the next section, a chart depicting the role and sequence of geography education in the elementary school presents central foci and suggested learning outcomes by grade level. A suggested pattern of course offerings and sequence for geographic education in the secondary school is followed by an outline of skills to be included in high school geography courses and a list of learning outcomes arranged according to the five basic themes identified earlier in the guidelines. (LH)