Students need to be able to classify mapping devices, map purposes, and code forms so that skills learned on one map setting can be readily transferred to any map using the same techniques. (MB)

Newspapers can help teach elementary students map skills. Students read the newspaper, make cards from newspaper maps, learn about various countries, and do reality-based creative writing. Students can continue to use the maps throughout the year to answer geography questions and stay up-to-date on current events. (SM)

Orienteering--the game of following a map to find predetermined locations--can spark interest and develop skills in map making and map reading. This article gives background on orienteering; describes indoor and outdoor orienteering activities; offers suggestions for incorporating orienteering into science, math, and language arts; and provides a…

Suggestions are made for classroom games intended to increase the understanding of a wide range of social studies concepts in elementary school children. These games cover the topics of history, geography, basic economics, community functions, media communication, career considerations, and making decisions. (JD)

Describes a map skills unit used in a second grade classroom in which teachers and students engaged in activites that moved from the concrete to the abstract and from trips around the school neighborhood to a "trip" to Europe. An insert includes two map study ideas for use in intermediate grades. (SM)

The Olympic games can help motivate students to learn geography. The article offers a geography decathlon with 10 events to help students build map skills, multicultural awareness, and cooperative spirit. Each event covers at least one of the five fundamental geographic themes (location, place, regions, human/environment interactions, and…