Where in
The World
Am I Now?

Subjects

Social Studies
--Geography

Grade

3-5
6-8

Brief Description

Students locate countries using latitude and longitude.

Objectives

Students will

learn or review latitude and longitude;
locate countries based on their latitude and longitude;
research one countrys history, geography, and flag;
challenge classmates to guess the country based on its flag and one fact about it.

Keywords

latitude, longitude, geography, map, countries, flag

Materials Needed

Internet access
access to World Map With Latitude and Longitude and Find Latitude and Longitude
drawing paper and supplies

Lesson Plan

Teach or review latitude and longitude. Explain to students that they can locate any place in the world if they know the locations latitude and longitude.

Provide students with a print or online version of a World Map With Latitude and Longitude and with a list of coordinates, and ask them to identify each location on the list. (You can find latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates to use for this activity at Find Latitude and Longitude.)

Then have students explore Flags of All Countries, where they can learn more about the geography, economy, government, and people of many countries. Invite each student to choose one country from the sites list, draw a copy of that countrys flag, and write on the back of the flag one interesting or distinguishing fact about that country. Explain to students that theyll be asking their classmates to guess which country the flag and fact are associated with, so they wont want to choose a flag or fact thats too recognizable. Finally, encourage each student to challenge his or her classmates to identify the chosen country.

Assessment

Assess students based on their participation in the activity and the quality of their work.

Lesson Plan Source

EducationWorld.com

Submitted By

Linda Starr

National Standards

SOCIAL SCIENCES: Geography
GRADES K - 12
NSS-G.K-12.1 The World in Spatial Terms
NSS-G.K-12.2 Places and Regions
NSS-G.K-12.3 Physical Systems
NSS-G.K-12.4 Human Systems
NSS-G.K-12.5 Environment and Society
NSS-G.K-12.6 Uses of Geography