Teaching Tips & Activities

Quick and easy ways to integrate geography and social studies into any busy teacher's day.

Geography & Social Studies

  1. Remember the Cardinal Directions!

    Grades: prek- 2

    Teach your students the phrase Never Eat Soggy Waffles, and your students won't forget the cardinal directions (north, east, south, and west).

    Make Your Own Compass

    Materials: Construction paper, scissors, crayons or markers, Achievement Series™ Primary U.S. or World Wall Map, water-soluble marker

    • Have students cut a circle out of the construction paper
    • Fold the circle in half once and then twice to form four sections.
    • Tell students to trace the fold lines and label them with the cardinal directions: N (north), east (E), south (S) and west (W).
    • Find your state on the map and draw a big "X" in the middle*. Tell students that they are going on a car trip, starting at the X. Point to a city directly north of the X, and ask students to use their compass to determine in which direction they need to go to get there. Repeat the car trip for the other cardinal directions

    * All Rand McNally wall maps are markable and washable with a water-soluble marker.
  2. Animals of the World

    Grades: K-3

    Materials: 7 Animal Stickers, Crayons, Rand McNally Primary Atlas, and world outline map (one for each student) from Primary Atlas Teacher Guide. (Note: you can use animal photos from the Internet if you don't have stickers)

    Animal sticker suggestions: North America - brown bear; South America - parrot; Europe - sheep; Asia - panda; Africa - lion; Australia - Kangaroo

    • On the world outline map have each student color in the different continents, each with a different color.
    • Tape the map onto each student's desk or post it on a designated bulletin board.
    • Present students with an animal sticker as a reward for good behavior or work.
    • Have the student place the animal on its native continent using the pictures in the Primary Atlas as their guide.
    • Once the student's map is full, he or she can receive a reward.
  3. Intermediate Directions

    Grades: 2-5

    Materials: Water-soluble marker and Rand McNally Political United States Desk Map

    Have students draw shapes on their Rand McNally Political United States Desk Maps* by following your directions below. Ask students what shape they see.

    Shape 1 (Triangle)

    • Start at Louisville, Kentucky
    • Draw a straight line southwest to Birmingham, Alabama.
    • Draw a straight line from Birmingham northwest to St. Louis, Missouri.
    • Draw a straight line from St. Louis southwest to Louisville.
    • What shape have you drawn?

    (Naming the intermediate direction as you say each city):

    Shape 2 (Star)

    Grand Forks, North Dakota; Birmingham, Alabama; Ogden, Utah; Cleveland, Ohio; Las Cruces, New Mexico; Grand Forks, North Dakota.

    Shape 3 (Diamond)

    Grand Forks, North Dakota; Springfield, Illinois; Houston, Texas; Denver, Colorado.

    Shape 4 (Parallelogram)

    Abilene, Texas; Dallas, Texas: Houston Texas; San Antonio, Texas.

    Have students write out their own directions for a shape and share them with a partner.

    * All Rand McNally wall maps are markable and washable with a water-soluble marker.

  4. Introduction to an Atlas

    Grades: 4-9

    Tell students that Rand McNally wants to use everyday people instead of actors to advertise its Classroom Atlas. Have them prepare a one-minute TV commercial that will convince the company to hire them. Tell your students to include as much information about an atlas and its benefits as possible.

  5. Cultural Features

    Grades: 4-12

    Using the Achievement Series™ political continent wall maps, have students examine the different shapes of countries and identify the geometric shapes they resemble (e.g. square, oval, circle, trapezoid, etc.). Ask them what shape would be the easiest to govern and to unify, all else being equal. A circle has the shortest boundary to defend and the shortest distance to places at the farthest perimeter. Although there are no countries that are perfect circles, have students find examples of countries that come close. Then ask them to find examples of countries that are in pieces, or fragmented (these countries are usually made up of islands). Discuss the problems such countries might face in trying to unify their people.

  6. Researching and Analyzing History

    Grades: 5-12+

    Some historians argue that the cause of the Civil War was not slavery but rather economic, social, and cultural differences between the North and the South. Divide the class into two teams. Provide time for teams to research the issue, using the Atlas of American History, their textbook, library, and internet resources. Then have the teams debate the issue.

  7. Researching Geography

    Grades: 6-12

    Prepare slips of paper with the name of a different country written on each one. Have each student choose a slip of paper. Have students create their own mini research report on a country and present their findings to the class. The report could include the country's latitude and longitude, bordering countries, physical features, climate, population, and culture. Rand McNally Classroom is a great resource for such research.
  8. Geography and Our World

    Grades: 6-12+

    Point out to students that some political boundaries follow straight lines - the term for these is geometric boundaries - while others follow natural features such as rivers and mountain ranges. Ask students to find examples of each type of boundary on the Achievement Series™ Political World and U.S. maps. Ask them which type of boundary is more common for countries, and whether or not the same is true for states.