geography class assignment

Geography Worksheets, Lesson Plans, Printables

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Printables for Grades K-5

Build your students map reading and identification skills with these various activities that cover maps of the entire world. These visual representations of parts of the world will help your students discover without having to leave the classroom! These resources are geared toward grades K-5.

• U.S. Map with State Capitals
• Find the Continents and Oceans
• United States Map (Outline)
• Outline Map of Asia
• World Map (Black and White)
• Africa Mapping Activity
• Map of Southeast United States
• More Popular Geography Printables

Printables for Grades 6-8

Go deeper with your study with these printable maps of different parts of the world. Whether you are completing a comprehensive study of the United States or another country, or you just want to focus on a particular subsection, these worksheets will help students in the moment during your lessons as well as a resource to study for their quizzes as well.

• Geography Quiz: State Capitals
• Map of Midwest United States
• Map of Northeast United States

Printables for Grades 9-12

Use these resources for a general study of different countries or modify them to target a specific historical period or political movement that you want to focus on with your students. These maps can be a useful resource or study guide as students move toward learning more higher order concepts and retaining more historical information throughout the upper grades.

• Map of North America
• Political Map of Europe
• Geography Quiz: True or False

Lesson Plans

Use these comprehensive lesson plans to fully develop an individual, geographical concepts, or historical periods of time that you want to focus on with your students. Within each lesson, you will be guided on how to complete the lesson with students as well as provided different questions, discussions, or activities to help students deeply understand the topic under study.

• PowerPoint Postcards Presentation
• Latitude and Longitude
• Chart Columbus's Voyages
• Australia Poster
• Pilgrim Unit (7 lessons)
• What Are the Modern Olympic Games?
• Map Making, Floor Plans & Map Reading
• More Popular Geography Lesson Plans

Printable Geography Quizzes

Tired of making your own geography quizzes? Who says you have to? Review the different quizzes in this section to use as the perfect complement to your lessons and activities. You can use these quizzes as is or can modify them to better meet your teaching style or the needs of your classroom.

• Quiz: Southeast United States
• Quiz: Southwest U.S. State Capitals
• Quiz: The United States: West Region
• Quiz: Western U.S. State Capitals
• More Printable Geography Quizzes

Maps and Globes Resources

Use these printable map outlines or review the Practicing Map Skills activity to help your students learn about the different geographic features of various places around the world. These maps can be used again and again and are great resources to help student keep track of the constantly changing world.

• Practicing Map Skills
• Map of U.S. Regions
• Map Library
• More Popular Maps and Globes Resources

Geography Games & Puzzles

Need an interactive game to help reinforce your students' understanding of a geographical unit? This section is the one for you. Whether you want to teach students initial map skills by creating your own map of your classroom, or help them remember the different features that can be used when viewing a map, these printable games will make learning fun for your students.

• Find the State
• A Geography Wordsearch
• Magnificent Maps: Neighborhood Map
• Globe Wordsearch
• Name That Country
• Magnificent Maps: Classroom Map
• Magnificent Maps: Community Map
• More Geography Games & Puzzles

Technology Resources for Geography

Build your students inquiry, research, and discussion skills with these geographical technology resources. In this section, students will be responsible for investigating the world's wonders and reporting on their findings.

• Wonders of the World Questions
• Wonders of the World
• Researching Our National Parks
• Fantasy Vacation
• How Far Is It?
• More Technology Resources for Geography

U.S. Geography Resources

Use these printable maps to teach a comprehensive study of the geographical makeup of the United States. Students can keep these maps as study tools when looking back on a full year's study of the U.S. or just as a quick reference during a topic or concept.

• Map of Western United States
• Map of Southwest United States
• United States Maps Gallery
• Map Library of the United States
• More Popular U.S. Geography Resources

World Geography Resources

Use these printable maps to teach a comprehensive study of the geographical makeup of the the world. Students can keep these maps as study tools when looking back on a full year's study of the world. or just as a quick reference during a topic or concept.

• World Geography Glossary
• Longest Street in the World
• World Maps Gallery
• Sailing Around the World
• Mountains of the World Quiz
• More Popular World Geography Resources

Political Geography Resources

Help your students keep track of all the political affiliations during different historical periods with these resources. In this section, you can use printable maps, interactive books and slideshows, or just reinforce their understanding of geographical topic with various quizzes.

• Map Library of the World
• Maps & Activities Printables Slideshow
• Maps & Activities Printable Book (Grades 4-12)
• Continents of the World
• Capitals of the World Quiz
• Major Cities and Rivers in Russia
• Mason and Dixon's Line
• More Political Geography Resources

Looking to build your geographical resource library? This section can provide you a wealth of resources ranging from lesson plans, various charts and maps, or just some fun information or facts on the different parts of the world.

• Origin of U.S. State Names
• Oceans and Seas
• Just Where Was Columbus?
• Languages by Country
• Columbus's Voyages
• Fifty Fun Facts About the Fifty U.S. States
• State Capitals and Largest Cities for Each State
• More Popular Geography References

Geography Skill Builders

Uses these Skill Builder guides to help students learn research skills and discover fun facts about geography. Each guide divides into different activities according to your individual classrooms grade level so it can be a resource that you use for any classroom. It also is completed weekly so this be a great compliment to your daily lessons, review sessions, or even as homework activities for your students.

• Skill Builders: Geography Challenge Questions, Week 1
• Skill Builders: Geography Challenge Questions, Week 2
• Skill Builders: Geography Challenge Questions, Week 3
• Skill Builders: Geography Challenge Questions, Week 4
• Skill Builders: Geography Challenge Questions, Week 9
• Skill Builders: Geography Challenge Questions, Week 20
• Skill Builders: Geography Challenge Questions, Week 28
• More Geography Skill Builders

Geography Resources for History Class

Use these resources to help students learn about the geography from different historical periods or important events. In this section, you have access to different lesson plans, printable maps, interactive activities, and classroom guides for discussions. These resources can be kept as is or can be modified to be better for your individual teaching style or classroom needs.

• Mapping the War: World War II
• German Nazi Takeover: 1933-1944
• Countries Quiz
• Triangular Trade in the Atlantic Ocean
• More Popular Geography Resources for History Class

Earth Science & Geography Connected

Planning a cross-curricular study with your fellow teachers? Or just trying to help students understand how geography is formed? This section will provide you for a little bit of both! In this section, you have access to different comprehension resources that outline the causes and effects of natural disasters and how that has developed the geography from the past to today.

• Ocean Pollution
• What's the Solution to Ocean Pollution?
• Chart of the Water Cycle
• Time Zones Around the World
• Weather Words
• Plate Tectonics Test
• More Popular Geography Activities for Earth Science Class

Math & Geography Connected

Planning a cross-curricular study with the other teachers in various content areas? Or just trying to help students understand map reading and geography skills? This section will help you prepare for any objective or goal you have for your students. Use the different printable maps, lesson plans, or graphic organizers to build students comprehension and map-reading skills by focusing on topics such as time zones and latitude and longitude.

• Coordinate Grids (Gr. 3)
• Time Zones in the U.S.
• Making Choices: Decision Making (Gr. 6)
• Reading a Map
• Colorful World Map
• Map of the United States
• More Popular Geography Activities for Math Class

Language Arts & Geography Connected

Build your students reading comprehension and map reading skills with these different activities. In this section, students connect their understanding of different geographic features with their own previous knowledge and experiences. Each resource is a perfect complement to any part of your lesson, as a resource for students to use to remember key concepts, or as supplemental work to assess student understanding.

• Read the Map
• Geography Reading Warm-Up: Rainforests
• State Scavenger Hunt
• The Oceans of the World
• Matching Animal Habitats
• Mount Everest Timeline
• More Popular Language Arts Activities for Geography

Art Activities for Geography

Use these activities to add an artistic spin to learning geography. Students can create their own geographical tools, create cultural artifacts of individuals from a different country, or design different geographic maps of countries around the world. These activities can be used as is or modified to better suit the needs of students in your classroom.

• Compass Rose
• Maps and Globes Book
• Kente Cloth
• Dora the Explorer Map (English)
• A Bedroom Map
• More Art Activities for Geography

Earth Day Activities

Build your students understanding of this important day with different resources that highlights the importance of taking care of our Earth. In this section, students can review the different economic resources that are pivotal to human survival, the different ways we take care of resources, and much more!

• Geographical Highs, Lows, and Boundaries of the U.S.
• Science, Technology, and Society: Clean Machine
• National Park System of the United States
• Rivers of the United States
• Glaciers: Ice That Flows
• Economic Resources
• National Scenic Trails
• More Earth Day Teacher Resources

Wildlife Week Resources

Use these literature/teacher guides to review with students the different types of wildlife that live in various places around the world. These guides can compliment any content area and will help your students improve their reading comprehension and geography skills. Use them as is or adapt them to best fit your classroom.

• On the Far Side of the Mountain
• Kingfisher Knowledge Guide: Dangerous Creatures Teacher's Guide
• Columbus Day Activities

Use these lessons or activities in this section to help students learn about Christopher Columbus's voyage and exploration of America. These activities can be kept as is or modified to fit your individual teaching style or the needs of your students.

• More Columbus Day Teacher Resources

Native American Resources

Help students understand that studying geography means studying the individuals that live in those different regions as well. By reviewing the lives and culture of Native Americans, students can connect their geographical skills to deeper higher order thinking ones

• Native American Life on the Great Plains
• Native American Tribes of the Great Plains
• More American Indians & Native Americans - Teacher Resources

Voyages & Travels Resources

Use these different resources with your students to discuss the concepts of voyages and traveling. In this section are different visual maps, lesson plans, reading comprehension activities, and much more! These activities can be used in their current form or modified to better serve the needs of your classroom.

• First Hot-Air Balloon Flight
• Planning for the Voyage - Pilgrim Study Unit (Lesson 1 of 7)
• Historical Fiction Reading Warm-Up: The Christmas Gift
• Seeing the World Sub Kit (Grades 7-8)
• Peary, Henson, and the North Pole
• More Popular Voyages & Travel Resources

Ocean Resources

Need some inspiration for teaching your students about the Earth's oceans? Well look no further! Whether it's full comprehensive lesson plans, printable map activities, game worksheets, or resource guides for geographical features, this is the section for you. These activities are great as they are or can be adapted to the characteristics of your classroom.

• Earth's Oceans
• An Ocean Adventure Sub Kit (Grades 3-4)
• What Are Ocean Currents?
• Modeling Climates
• Length of the U.S. Coastline by State
• Word Search: The World's Oceans
• Crossing the Atlantic by Rowboat
• More Oceans Teacher Resources

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Our Geography Lesson Ideas and Activities for the Classroom

Geography game educated guess.

This activity takes approximately 45-55 minutes. Can use anytime, but this activity is a great way to start a new unit as you typically open a new unit with a geography lesson. Designed for 9th grade, but can be adjusted for any grade. This lesson is noisy, hectic, and fun.

Game Preparation (Pair or Small Group Activity)

Tell your students to take out an atlas or a textbook.

Break up into small groups or pairs, and refer to your groups as teams. Make sure you have an even number of teams.

Working in groups, have each team (each group) secretly pick a location, one single spot in the region in which you are working.

Direct each team to design four (4) clues that will lead people to their spot. The first clue will be very general. The next two will narrow it down. The fourth clue will give it away.

Example: Clue #1 is general. (Example: USA East Coast) Clue #2 narrows it down. (a town in the Mid-Atlantic region) Clue #3 narrows it again. (home of the Naval Academy) Clue #4 gives it away. (capital of Maryland) The correct answer, of course, is Annapolis

Play the Game: Match up teams. The whole class plays at once. 3 Rounds. Time each round. Each group (team) will have 30 seconds per clue. Each team gets a turn to ask the other. Then the entire class switches teams. And you're off. One way to arrange your room for easy movement is to arrange desks so that one team has their back to the wall at each station. We call that the "outside". That way, the inside can stay put, and the outside teams can move three or five spaces.

Scoring: Scoring is based on a 4-3-2-1 scale. If you guess the answer from the first clue, your team receives 4 points. The second clue delivers 3 points. The third clue delivers 2 points. Your team will receive 1 point if you guess it correctly on the 4th clue. If you do not guess the answer after hearing the 4th clue, your opponents (the team asking the questions) lose a point. In case of disagreement, the teacher will decide if the clues are fair or not. Once all three rounds are completed, have teams take the average of all rounds to determine their final team score.

Using Outline Maps Works for any large geographic area. (Grades 5-7)

Print out or create an outline map of South America (or any large area) that includes outlines of each county. Add blank lines to name countries and cities.

Cut your outline map into puzzle pieces. Mix up the pieces. Paste these pieces onto a sheet of paper.

Photocopy your puzzle piece page to use as a handout for your students (one puzzle page per student.) Run some extra copies to have on hand.

Directions to the kids: Your job is to cut out the puzzle pieces, put this puzzle back together so that it resembles the continent of South America, and fill in the blanks. (Suggestions: Encourage the kids to use any classroom maps available, including those in their textbooks, to help them fill in the blanks. Allow the kids to help each other, as long as they keep the noise down.)

Movement Activity (Grades 5-9)

Teacher preparation.

• World Map on Bulletin Board
• Two different colors of push pins

Directions to the kids:

Day #1: (8-10 minutes) Ask students to tell you where the clothes they are wearing were made. Using the bulletin board map, teacher uses one color of push pin to mark country locations.

Student Assignment: Direct students to ask their parent(s) where their work clothes, jewelry, briefcases, tools, and whatever they use at work are made. Bring that information back to class.

Mini units & simulations

Australia: The Great Barrier Reef - Lesson Plan (2-3 days) with Personalities handout

India/Pakistan Dispute over Kashmir A 4-Day Mini-Unit with background and handouts

Israeli-Palestinian Conflict A Simulation for the Classroom (2 days) with background & handout.

Geography in the News Ongoing activity, daily, 5 Themes of Geography (8 weeks) 

Free Geography Presentations in PowerPoint format   

Lesson Plans and Classroom Activities for Geography by many teachers

Interactive Games and Things to Do for Geography for Kids

101+ Creative Geography Project Ideas For Students

Geography projects can be fun and engaging for students to learn about the world around them. Whether you’re a teacher looking for ideas or a student brainstorming topics, geography projects allow you to get creative and explore concepts like culture, environment, politics, and more through hands-on activities. 

In this blog post, we’ll share some creative geography project ideas to consider for your next assignment or homeschool lesson. The possibilities are endless when you think outside the box and tie geography into art, building, research, and other interests. We hope these ideas spark inspiration for your next geography project! 

The blog will include creative ideas, from designing cultural dress and food to constructing landform models. With the right innovative spin, geography projects can be exciting and enriching learning experiences.

What is a Geography Project?

Table of Contents

A geography project is an assignment where students research and present information about a specific geographic topic or location. Students typically choose a country, U.S. state, city, landform, or other geographic subject to focus their project on. 

The project often involves creating a visual display like a poster, diorama, or digital presentation along with a written report. The report summarizes key facts and details about the geographic subject, including location, climate, terrain, culture, economy, history, and more. 

Geography projects allow students to build research skills while learning in-depth about a place that interests them. The presentation portion adds a creative element and helps share what they learned. Overall, geography projects aim to expand students’ knowledge of world geography and cultures.

Importance Of Hands-On Learning In Geography

Here are a few thoughts on the importance of hands-on learning in geography education:

• Promotes spatial thinking skills: Working with maps, globes, imagery, etc., helps students develop spatial reasoning abilities. Visualizing relationships between places and patterns in geographic data is a crucial skill. Hands-on activities make these tangible.
• Engages multiple senses: Using 3D models, doing fieldwork, and working with photos/videos appeals to visual, tactile, and other forms of sensory learning. This can help concepts stick.
• Develop practical fieldwork skills: Using compasses, GPS, surveying equipment, and GIS software helps build skills used by geographers in the workplace. Practice makes students comfortable with applying technology.
• Encourages active learning: Instead of passively listening to lectures, hands-on learning allows students to construct and apply geographic knowledge actively. This promotes deeper, long-lasting understanding.
• Makes connections to the real world: Fieldwork helps students connect abstract concepts to real-world environments and spatial patterns. Seeing geography in action leads to greater interest and engagement.
• Promotes collaboration : Many hands-on activities are collaborative, developing teamwork and communication skills. Group projects and discussions also aid learning.

In summary, hands-on learning engages students, reinforces concepts through experience, and helps build essential skills. It’s an invaluable part of a well-rounded geography education.

Creative Geography Project Ideas

Here are some creative geography project ideas categorized for your convenience:

Physical Geography

• Create a 3D model of a mountain range.
• Study the formation of natural disasters like earthquakes and tornadoes.
• Investigate the impact of climate change on glaciers.
• Explore the formation and characteristics of different types of soil.
• Create a map highlighting different landforms around the world.

Human Geography

• Analyze population density in various regions.
• Examine the cultural impact of migration on communities.
• Investigate the effects of urbanization on local ecosystems.
• Explore the history and impact of a specific migration pattern.
• Create a project on the urban development of a city over time.

Cultural Geography

• Research the cultural significance of a traditional dance in a specific country.
• Examine the role of language in shaping cultural identities.
• Explore the impact of globalization on indigenous cultures.
• Create a project on the traditions and customs of a specific ethnic group.
• Investigate the cultural significance of particular landmarks.

Political Geography

• Analyze the impact of political borders on communities.
• Examine the history of a specific political conflict and its geographical roots.
• Investigate the geopolitical implications of a natural resource.
• Study the effects of gerrymandering on local politics.
• Create a project on the history and impact of a specific political ideology.

Economic Geography

• Investigate the economic disparities between urban and rural areas.
• Analyze the impact of trade agreements on a specific region.
• Explore the role of agriculture in shaping the economy of a country.
• Study the geography of a particular industry, such as technology or manufacturing.
• Create a project on the economic challenges faced by a developing country.

Environmental Geography

• Explore the impact of deforestation on biodiversity.
• Investigate the geography of renewable energy sources.
• Examine the effects of pollution on water sources.
• Study the geography of endangered species and conservation efforts.
• Create a project on the impact of climate change on a specific ecosystem.

GIS and Mapping

• Develop a GIS project to analyze crime patterns in a city.
• Create an interactive map showcasing the geographical features of a region.
• Investigate the use of GIS in disaster management.
• Analyze the impact of urban planning on traffic flow using GIS.
• Develop a mapping project to study population distribution.

Historical Geography

• Explore the geographical factors that influenced ancient civilizations.
• Examine the impact of geographical features on historical battles.
• Investigate the role of geography in the spread of diseases throughout history.
• Study the geographical factors that led to the rise and fall of empires.
• Create a project on the geographical context of a specific historical event.

Geopolitics

• Analyze the geopolitical implications of a major international conflict.
• Examine the role of geography in global power dynamics.
• Investigate the impact of geopolitical alliances on world politics.
• Study the geographical factors influencing international trade relations.
• Create a project on the role of geography in global security issues.

Regional Studies

• Explore the geography and culture of a specific region in Asia.
• Analyze the economic development of a specific African country.
• Investigate the impact of colonization on the geography of Latin America.
• Study the environmental challenges faced by countries in the Middle East.
• Create a project on the political landscape of a European nation.

Tourism and Recreation

• Develop a tourism guide for a specific destination, including cultural and geographical highlights.
• Concern about the effect of tourism on the environment of a popular destination.
• Investigate the geography of recreational activities in a specific region.
• Study the economic impact of tourism on a local community.
• Create a project on sustainable tourism practices.
• Design a fantasy world map, including geographical features and landmarks.
• Create a thematic map illustrating a specific aspect of geography.
• Develop a map highlighting the distribution of a particular animal species.
• Design a treasure map with geographical clues.
• Create a map showcasing the geographical settings of famous novels or movies.

Water Resources

• Investigate the geography of rivers and their importance to civilizations.
• Examine the impact of dams on river ecosystems.
• Study the geography of freshwater scarcity in different regions.
• Analyze the effects of pollution on freshwater sources.
• Create a project on the management of water resources in a specific area.

Land Use Planning

• Analyze the effect of urban sprawl on agricultural land.
• Investigate the geography of sustainable urban planning.
• Study the effects of zoning regulations on land use.
• Create a project on the geographical factors influencing land conservation.
• Analyze the impact of industrial development on land use patterns.

Climate and Weather Patterns

• Study the geography of monsoons in different regions.
• Examine the impact of El Niño and La Niña on global weather patterns.
• Investigate the geography of Tornado Alley and its weather patterns.
• Analyze the effects of climate change on tropical rainforests.
• Create a project on the geography of deserts and their unique weather conditions.

Remote Sensing

• Develop a project using satellite imagery to monitor deforestation.
• Analyze the use of remote sensing in agriculture and crop monitoring.
• Investigate the role of remote sensing in disaster response and recovery.
• Study the use of satellite technology in mapping urban growth.
• Create a project on the applications of remote sensing in environmental conservation.

Transportation Geography

• Examine the geography of major transportation hubs in a country.
• Investigate the impact of transportation on air quality in urban areas.
• Study the geographical factors influencing the development of transportation infrastructure.
• Analyze the role of geography in determining transportation routes.
• Create a project on the history and impact of a specific transportation mode.

Border Studies

• Explore the geographical and cultural dynamics of international borders.
• Examine the impact of border disputes on neighboring regions.
• Investigate the role of geographical features in shaping national borders.
• Study the effects of border security measures on local communities.
• Create a project on the history and impact of a specific international border.

Geography of Sports

• Analyze the geographical distribution of sports facilities in a city.
• Examine the impact of geography on the popularity of specific sports.
• Investigate the geography of sports events and their economic impact.
• Study the role of climate and geography in outdoor sports.
• Create a project on the geography of sports fandom in different regions.

Landscape Ecology

• Explore the geography of different ecosystems and their biodiversity.
• Examine the impact of human activities on landscape ecology.
• Investigate the role of geography in habitat fragmentation .
• Study the geographical factors influencing the spread of invasive species.
• Create a project on the restoration of degraded landscapes.

Geography and Technology

• Analyze the role of technology in changing geographical perspectives.
• Examine the impact of GIS and GPS on navigation and mapping.
• Investigate the geography of internet access and digital connectivity.
• Study the geographical implications of emerging technologies like drones.

So, these are the Creative Geography Project Ideas for students. 

Final Remarks

In summary, geography projects are a dynamic way for students to explore the world, combining research with creativity. By including hands-on activities, students develop important spatial thinking abilities, use multiple senses, and connect theoretical ideas to real-world situations. 

The different geography project ideas cover physical, human, cultural, political, economic, environmental, and technological aspects of geography, ensuring a complete learning experience. Geography projects promote active learning, teamwork, and practical fieldwork skills, encouraging a more profound understanding of global issues. 

Welcoming innovation and curiosity, these ideas aim to make learning geography exciting, memorable, and relevant for students, building a lifelong interest in the diverse landscapes and cultures that shape our world.

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Trauma-informed practices in schools, teacher well-being, cultivating diversity, equity, & inclusion, integrating technology in the classroom, social-emotional development, covid-19 resources, invest in resilience: summer toolkit, civics & resilience, all toolkits, degree programs, trauma-informed professional development, teacher licensure & certification, how to become - career information, classroom management, instructional design, lifestyle & self-care, online higher ed teaching, current events, beyond the globe: 8 awesome geography classroom projects.

Geography lessons today are more important than ever. As our world becomes more globalized, it’s crucial for kids to understand the places on Earth and their relationship with each other. It provides context about where we live and how we relate to people around us. It sparks curiosity about other cultures. And, ultimately, teaches that we are all connected. 

So don’t let your geography lessons fall flat. Here are some inspired projects that go above and beyond your classroom’s globe. 

Build a new way to view the world with Google Earth . A virtual globe, Google Earth’s ability to display a world map without distortion can shed light on why Greenland has always looked so big! Introduce your students to the amazing tools and features of Google Earth while comparing cartographer renditions of the world to a virtual version. Explore the world and its structures and ask 20 questions. 

Combine geography and self-exploration with autobiographical island maps . After completing an autobiographical survey, students choose symbols and use their map studies to create an artistic representation of their life in the form of an island.

Use a compass to find your way . Before there was an app for that, travelers used a compass to find their way. Introduce your students to orienteering with this awesome activity. With a short video, reading activity, and discussion questions, you can teach your students how to find their way the old-fashioned way. 

Learn how the world’s first metro system was built . Railroads united the world like nothing before it. Now able to travel longer distances more quickly and safely, industry and culture exploded in the early 19th century. Video and discussion resources can be customized to fit your classroom needs. 

Make a contour map . Topography is often a difficult topic for students to understand. Contour lines, meant to represent the highs and lows of an area on the map, don’t always translate to young students’ minds. By creating their own 3D version with drawing paper, clay, different colored markers, fishing line, and a pencil, students can kinesthetically create a topographical map that makes sense!

Geography Bingo! This activity from the New York Times challenges students to find examples of how geography relates to our world every day using national geography standards. A great online scavenger hunt for one class — or a semester-long project — add a little competition to learning more about the world.

Teach the 5 themes of geography using the newspaper . Full of class, group, and individual activities, this unit of study can be used as a whole, or as individual lessons to supplement your current curriculum. Requiring students to gather examples beyond the textbook will help them connect everyday life with the study of the world. 

Understand Environmentalism: Then and now . Give students a better understanding of the history of the conservation movement with this activity. Developed for high school, students will document the development of conservation over time through research and a culminating essay.

Help your students conquer the world by giving them the learning experiences that will truly engage their interests and solidify their sense of interconnectedness!

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Tagged as: Engaging Activities ,  High School (Grades: 9-12) ,  History and Social Studies ,  Middle School (Grades: 6-8)

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Geography-Rich Classroom

Get ideas for incorporating geography into any classroom or discipline. Immerse your students in these creative projects.

Geography, Human Geography, Physical Geography

Illustration by Mary Crooks

Get ideas for incorporating geography into any classroom or discipline.

Helping the Environment

Have students list ways that people affect their environment every day, for example, driving cars, using water, disposing of garbage or smoking cigarettes. Have students make a second list of ways that people affect their environment through seasonal activities, for example, watering lawns, burning leaves, fishing or hunting. Use a Venn diagram to compare and contrast the two lists. Have students discuss which activities are more harmful or helpful to their environment. Ask students to suggest ways that people can change their behavior and improve their environment.

Have students publish or present student-created maps whenever possible. Ask students to explain their mapmaking process and give them positive feedback.

Create a Geography Center

Include a variety of maps, atlases, globes, books and magazines. Also include science or social studies concepts—such as the water cycle, plate tectonics and migration patterns—presented through the lens of a geographic perspective.

Class Collage

Have students create a class collage on top of a wall-sized world map. Ask them to collect postcards and arrange the postcards according to continent and country. Have students add illustrations and photos of political leaders, historical events and native wildlife from postage stamps. They can also add objects by location; for example, a spice from the main area where it grows, or a feather from the main location of a type of bird.

Track the Weather

Have students keep track of the weather and discuss patterns on weather maps. Have them predict what the weather will be in one day, two days or a week. Have students check and discuss their predictions.

Find Similarities

Have students list and discuss four ways their hometown is connected to a nearby town or city that they have located on a map.

Email Pen Pals

Have students begin an email correspondence with pen pals from around the country or world. Make sure they share information about the landscape, habitats and ecosystems around their homes and school as well as details about daily life and culture.

If You Were Ambassador

Divide students into small groups and have each group choose a country. Tell each group to imagine they are the United States ambassador to that country. What kind of place is the country? What unique qualities must an ambassador possess in order to adequately represent the U.S. in that place? What should the ambassador learn about the country before moving there?

Identify Locations

Using latitude and longitude lines on a Mapmaker world map , have students locate the following: • the highest mountain on your continent • the capital cities of three foreign countries • the national park closest to your town • the mouths of three major rivers • three major cities in the United States

Include examples in the Northern, Southern, Eastern and Western Hemispheres.

Guess That Place

Give each student a folded piece of paper on which you have written a different name of a place that is known and easily described by the students. Ask each student to write a description of their place without naming it, then exchange descriptions with another student. How many students can identify the place from its description alone? Have them discuss what makes one description easier or harder to guess than another.

Sense of Place

Make a list of common phrases that include the word “place” For example, “to put someone in her place,” “a place for everything and everything in its place,” “if I were in your place,” “caught between a rock and a hard place”. Have students analyze how these phrases help define the word “place.” Do the phrases imply physical and human characteristics? If so, how? Why are we comfortable in some places but not in others? Ask students to describe literal and figurative places in which they have found themselves and to explain whether they have been comfortable or uncomfortable in those places.

Consider Location

Ask students to imagine that they can pick up their school building—as if it were a toy block—and relocate it anywhere they choose. Have them discuss how their daily lives would be different if their school were located farther north, south, east or west. Have students compare and contrast the advantages and disadvantages of each location.

Discuss Current Events

Have students bring in the world news section of a daily newspaper and select two cities currently in the news to locate on a map. Have small groups of students research and present their findings on ways in which the two cities are connected. For example, the cities might be linked by human migration routes, weather patterns, economic concerns, communication systems or transportation networks.

Geography and Music

Have students learn the words to and sing “Home on the Range.” Discuss how the song describes a specific place. What kind of place is it? What are its physical characteristics? What other songs do the students know that describe specific places?

Natural Disasters

Divide students into small groups. Assign each group a country. Then have each group choose a natural disaster that could realistically affect people in that country. What physical characteristics of the country might influence the disaster? What human characteristics of the place might affect government's ability to respond to the disaster?

School-Grounds Tour

Take students for a walk around the neighborhood or school grounds and have them observe the physical and human characteristics of the place. What makes it different from other schools or places in the area? When you return to the classroom, make a list of all the physical and human characteristics that students observed. Did all students observe the same characteristics? Did some students observe different characteristics? Had they ever made these observations before?

Compare Historical Photographs

Take a field trip to the local library or historical society. Collect representative photographs, both old and new, of your community, and photocopy them. Back in the classroom, have students compare all of the photographs and articulate their observations of how places and people have changed over the years. Are there more buildings or different types of buildings? What are the differences in types of transportation? Are there just as many trees in the older photographs as there are in the newer ones? Have students list ways in which the people of your town or city have changed the environment over the years.

Anytime a student returns from travels with his or her family, have the student present to the class about the state, region or country and its people by showing pictures, maps and artifacts.

Plant a School Garden

Have students design a garden for your school grounds or local community and explore the following questions: What kind of vegetation—flowers, trees, vegetables or fruits—would grow in your area? How might the school grounds need to be changed before planting the garden? Is it possible that flowers or vegetables grew on this same land before the school was built? What is the native vegetation in your area? How could you make sure the garden gets enough water and sunlight? What effects—positive or negative—would your garden have on the school environment?

Adapting to Environments

Read aloud or have students read paragraphs from stories about people who struggle to survive in an unexplored environment, for example, The Swiss Family Robinson or The Mosquito Coast. Discuss ways in which the characters learn to adapt to their environment. How and where do they find food, clothing, and shelter? How does their environment change as they begin to create a home for themselves? As a class, compare the ways in which they adapt successfully or unsuccessfully. Then have students identify areas in the world where people must adapt to a harsh environment if they are to survive.

Compare Types of Movement

For example, compare the movement of blood and nutrients through the body with the movement of people and resources across bodies of land and water. What happens to the movement of blood when we stand on our heads? How does a person feel when food isn’t moving properly through the digestive system? What happens to the movement of traffic in a city when traffic lights are broken? Point out to students that we use the word "congested" to refer to people with colds as well as locations with heavy traffic. How do ideas move? What would happen if goods, ideas or people stopped moving?

Investigate Communication

How do people react—personally, professionally, politically, and technologically—when they are able to freely communicate with one another? In what ways are people prevented from experiencing the movement of ideas? Examples might include censorship, geographic barriers, or language barriers. What happens when people are not able to communicate?

How Do Ideas Spread?

Discuss different ways that ideas travel from one place to another, for example, music, literature, and folk tales.

Learn From a Meteorologist

Invite a local weather forecaster to join your class and discuss climate conditions in your area over the last century. Is data available to indicate climatic changes? If so, what are the possible causes—such as urbanization, volcanic activity or transportation systems? Is it warmer in the city or in the country during the summer months? Why?

Explore Different Physical Regions

Introduce students to physical regions on earth, including grasslands, deserts , rain forests, mountains and polar regions. Assign groups of students to different regions. Have students list items that they would need to adapt to the environment when visiting their assigned regions. Items might include food, clothing, insect repellent, tools and more. How many of the items do they have to buy? What kinds of items do people who live in rain forest regions have in common with people who live in mountainous regions? What items are unique to one region? What items are manufactured in their region? What items are imported? What items are absolutely essential?

Explore a Map of Your Community

Have students read the map and make a list of all the parks they can find in the immediate community. Then have students work independently or in groups to research each park and present their research to the class. Students should include their ideas on what is unique about the park. If possible, students should visit the park with adult supervision.

Where Was It Made?

Make a list of 12 items in the classroom that have been manufactured in the United States, including items of clothing, pencils, books and other products. How many of the items in the classroom can students name that have been manufactured in another country? Choose several items—such as desks, light fixtures or articles of clothing—and discuss the raw materials needed to make them, the most likely place of production or manufacture, and the most likely form of transportation from the place of manufacture to the classroom.

Compare Transportation Systems

Make a comparison chart of human-made transportation systems—such as cars, planes and communication systems—and natural movement systems—such as weather, erosion and tides. List the different "passengers" that are transported by the two different kinds of transportation systems. Encourage students to think of tangible goods like foodstuffs, as well as intangibles like sound, light or ideas.

Divide Your Town into Regions

Have students use a city map to divide their town or city into regions, such as political, residential, recreational, ethnic or commercial regions. How many regions can they name? What are the unifying characteristics that make up the regions? Do students in the class live in different regions? Have students choose additional characteristics and divide the town or city into new regions. What are the overlapping characteristics? Into how many different regions can students divide their town or city?

Play the Latitude and Longitude Game

Give students a list of geographic coordinates and have them use paper maps, globes or online maps with latitude and longitude to find the country or location of the geographic coordinates. Or, have students make their best guesses and use the maps afterwards to see which guesses are closest.

U.S. History

Have students trace the history of regions in the United States. What regions existed in 1700, 1750, 1800, 1850, 1900 and 1950? Divide students into "century groups"; for example, 1700, 1800 and so on. Which regions in each century group still exist today? Why or why not? Have each group research why regional boundaries did or did not change and then present its findings to the class.

Climatic Regions

Have students use a MapMaker map of the United States to divide the United States into climatic regions. Assign groups of students to each region. How do people from different climatic regions dress? What different foods do they eat? Name some overlapping characteristics among the regions. Have students do the same exercise for language regions in Europe.

Research a Region

Have students study a new region each week for five weeks. Research the climate, landforms, population, cultural groups and interesting places from that region.

Create Jigsaw Maps

First, have students color an outline map of a continent, using different colors for each country. Next, have students glue the map to a piece of cardboard and cut along the country borders. Time students as they put the puzzle back together.

Use a Scale Bar

A map usually includes a scale bar to show the relationship between distance on the map and true distance on the ground. Have students use rulers to measure the distance between two cities or other places and calculate the true distance using the scale bar. To do the activity online, they can use National Geographic MapMaker .

Research Religion

Have students look for local churches online and make a list of the different religious groups represented in their community. Have students research the origins of selected groups. Then ask students to plot the origins of each group on a map of the world . What are some of the reasons that these religious groups moved to the United States? What are the historical, political and cultural factors involved?

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14 Ways To Make Geography Class Fun

It is not challenging to make geography class fun and engaging if you use some of the ideas below. Unfortunately, Social Sciences get a bad reputation for being boring – which is the farthest from the truth. Gone are the days of independently reading the textbook and silently writing the answers in your notebook. Geography classes today, thanks to technology and creative teaching strategies, can be fun. 

Ideas On How To Make Geography Class Fun

VR Field Trips  

VR field trips are a great way to make geography class fun. To have students engage in a virtual reality (VR) field trip, you will need a Google Cardboard or a cheaper alternative per student or for a group of students. 6 of these VR viewers make for a great station activity in your classroom. Students will need to download a VR app for their phone (with parent permission and adhering to district tech guidelines as many apps are 18+). If your school has a tech budget, any app-ready device, such as a small tablet, cheap smartphone, or iPod, will work.

Once the tech is set up, students search the field trip name they are to attend and put the VR viewer up to their faces. Then they can walk around the room and view the location in 3D as if they are really there. Possible apps: Google Cardboard, Google Expeditions, Within VR, YouTube VR. Want more VR apps? Read this list from The Guardian . 

Simulation Activities 

Another way to make geography class fun is to use simulation activities. Geography lends itself nicely to simulation activities – examining rocks, dirt, minerals, and soil. I also saw this great lesson online where the teacher gave each student a chocolate chip cookie and a toothpick. Students must extract the “minerals” (chocolate chips) from the mountain (cookie), usually only a toothpick. They have to be careful not to completely destroy the mountain (cookie). What parts of your curriculum could be explored through a simulation?

Cut and Paste Lessons

Students need to talk and work with their hands to stay engaged at school. I like to use cut-and-paste activities a few times a year to give students time to work together with their peers while trying to match the lesson content together. Turn your vocabulary or definition lessons into an interactive cut-and-paste activity with students cutting apart items that then need to be matched up before gluing. Always tell students to raise their hands and get their work checked over by a teacher before the final glue. 

QR Code Vocab

If you want a more tech-focused lesson – have students review and learn new vocabulary and concepts using QR codes. I create QR codes and post them around the room or on a Google Slideshow. Students then use school technology or personal tech to scan the codes, which then show embedded information on the device.

I use QR codes in vocabulary scavenger hunts to launch new units. Students get to get up and move around the classroom, work with their peers and acquire new vocabulary/concepts. QR codes can also be embedded into Hyperdocs, Google Docs, Google Slides, and other tech programs for virtual use. 

Interactive Notebook Lessons

Another cutting and pasting activity is replacing a simple graphic organizer with an interactive version of the organizer that requires students to cut, fold and paste. I use a few of these types of lessons each year to add variety to my note-taking methods. It’s simple but is still an effective way to make geography class fun. 

Geoguesser is a fantastic website where students are put in a location around the world and have to use geographic clues (landforms, trees, vegetation, etc) to guess where they are. This is a favourite in my class because the whole class can participate. I give each student scrap paper, and then we all write down our guesses together. I ask for volunteers to share their guesses – but their guesses must be backed up by evidence from the photos. What a fantastic cross-curricular literacy link!

Mystery Skype 

The internet has connected teachers all around the world. One way to make geography class fun is to make connections with another class and set up a time to have a Skype, Zoom, or Google Meet. Each student in both classes gets 1 question they can ask the other class. After all of the questions, students have to guess where the other class is located. 

Virtual Field Trips

No permission slip is needed for students to visit places that are too far from your school. A quick Google search of the topic with the words “virtual field trip” will yield results. I have linked a few websites so teachers can get ideas for virtual field trips they can go on with their students.

• https://www.discoveryeducationglobal.com/community/virtual-field-trips/
• https://kidsactivitiesblog.com/135714/virtual-field-trips/
• https://thecanadianhomeschooler.com/5-canadian-virtual-field-trips/

Google Tools

Google has a plethora of tools for Geography teachers. I have linked two popular tools below for you to explore that will make geography class fun. 

• Google Maps – students can view local, national, and global maps as well as use street view or satellite views over certain areas. 
• Google Earth – students can explore the Earth and create their own custom trips with placemarks. 

Short Videos 

Videos are a great way for students to learn information – and a great way to make geography class fun. But be very mindful of how long your video is. No one wants to watch an 11-hour documentary. I really like the videos created by the YouTube channel Crash Course Kids . Many school districts pay for streaming video services, so check with your media resource teacher or school librarian to find out what might be available for your classes. Read 12 Ways A School Librarian Can Help Classroom Teachers . Also, be sure that you preview the videos before showing them to your students to ensure they are safe for classroom viewing. 

Opinion-Based Activities

Students love to give their opinions, and I want them to feel comfortable sharing their thoughts in my classroom. I use this Hot Topics Assignment to get students to explore controversial issues related to Geography. Students are responsible for researching a “hot topic” of their choice and then leading the class in a structured discussion/debate. Possible topics: hybrid cars, recycling, oil sands, offshore drilling.

Find the Hot Topics Assignment on Shopify CAD or Teachers Pay Teachers USD .

Inquiry-Based Learning

A huge push in the Social Studies realm has been for more inquiry-based lessons. I have students complete at least four inquiries per year in my History and Geography classes. Not only are they informative and educational, but they can also make geography class fun.

Want more information on inquiry? 

• Check out this blog post on Inquiry and Project-Based Learning . 
• Check out this video from John Spencer What is Inquiry-Based Learning?  

Gallery Walk 

I love using virtual or in-person gallery walks to get students thinking about different topics and concepts, and to make geography class fun. Below is a brief outline of how to conduct a gallery walk in person or virtually. 

• Post several large sheets of paper around your classroom or the hallway; each is a “station” in your Gallery Walk. On each piece of paper, showcase one of the following: a question, textbook reading, picture, quote, map, etc. 
• Divide your class into groups of 2 – 4 students. There should not be more groups than stations. Set a visual timer so students know when it is time to rotate to another station. I give students 3-4 minutes per station, depending on the activity. 
• Each group visits each station and responds to the question or other things on that station’s paper. Students can write their thoughts on the main paper or they can have a graphic organizer to collect their thoughts and share during the class discussion. 
• Once students have visited all stations, have them return to their seats and discuss what was written at each station as a class.
• This can be completed virtually using Hyperdocs or a Google Slideshow. Each Gallery Walk station becomes its own Google Slide, and students use technology to view the slideshow and respond in a digital or paper document. 

When I need to cover a lot of different topics, I create stations for my students to rotate through. These stations can be completed in person with paper and a Chromebook at each table or virtually using Hyperdocs . Each station is related to one specific topic with a specific task for students to complete before they leave that station and rotate to another. I mix up the activities at each station so they are not all readings or watching videos. Use some of the ideas from this blog post to create your station activities and make geography class fun. 

Geography Resources to Make Geography Class Fun

I have created Geography units that I have used in my classroom and have been used by classrooms around Canada and the world. 

Physical Geography (landforms, natural resources, natural disasters)

Teachers are provided with 37 in-depth lessons to help their students explore and understand physical patterns in a changing world as well as natural resources around the world use and sustainability.

Physical geography topics covered: landforms, water systems, vegetation regions, climate regions, and challenges presented by the physical environment. Natural resources topics covered: types, issues, extraction methods, perspectives on use, the impact of use, environmental concerns, and energy types.  This resource is aligned with the 2018 Ontario Social Studies Curriculum.

Find the Grade 7 Geography Bundle on Shopify CAD or Teachers Pay Teachers USD .

Grade 7 Modified Geography Bundle

This modified Grade 7 Geography bundle is for classroom teachers who are required to teach the Grade 7 Ontario Geography Curriculum but have students working significantly below grade level in reading, writing, and comprehension. Each of the 27 lessons aligns with a critical concept in the curriculum but has significantly reduced reading and writing expectations within the lesson.

You can find the  Grade 7 Modified Geography Bundle  on  Shopify CAD  or  Teachers Pay Teachers USD .

Human Geography (population, environmental issues, human impact on the Earth)

Teachers are provided with 32 in-depth lessons to help their students explore and understand global settlement patterns and their effect on the environment as well as lessons on economic development and quality of life. This resource is aligned with the 2018 Ontario Social Studies Curriculum.

Find the Grade 8 Geography Bundle on Shopify CAD or Teachers Pay Teachers USD .

Grade 8 Modified Geography Bundle

This modified Grade 8 Geography bundle is for classroom teachers who are required to teach the Grade 8 Ontario Geography Curriculum but have students working significantly below grade level in reading, writing, and comprehension. Each of the 31 lessons aligns with a critical concept in the curriculum but has significantly reduced reading and writing expectations within the lesson.

You can find the  Grade 8 Modified Geography Bundle  on  Shopify CAD  or  Teachers Pay Teachers USD .

Are you teaching split grades? 

All 2 Peas and a Dog history resources are available for split grades, including all modified units. Click the links below to learn more.

• Grade 7/8 Geography Bundle – CAD$  or  USD$
• Modified Grade 7/8 Geography Bundle – CAD$  or  USD$

Don’t forget the report card comments! 

2 Peas and a Dog makes assessments easy with these 100% editable report card comments. These comment banks are for Strands A and B for grades 7 and 8 and are sorted by Levels 1-4, strengths, and next steps.

• Grade 7 Geography Report Card Comments – CAD$  or  USD$
• Grade 8 Geography Report Card Comments – CAD$  or  USD$

This article has provided 14 different ways to make geography class fun for teachers and students. Do not try to add all of these ideas to every lesson or every unit you teach. Select 1 or 2 to try out this school year and add more as you become more familiar and comfortable with these concepts. 

I hope you can use some of these ideas to make geography class fun for your students.

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Geography Worksheets and Printables

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The 5 Themes of Geography

Location, Place, Human-Environment Interaction, Movement, and Region

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• M.A., Geography, California State University - Northridge
• B.A., Geography, University of California - Davis

The five themes of geography are location, place, human-environment interaction, movement, and region. These were defined in 1984 by the National Council for Geographic Education and the Association of American Geographers to facilitate and organize the teaching of geography in the K-12 classroom.

While the five themes have since been supplanted by the more comprehensive National Geography Standards , they still provide an effective means of organizing geography instruction.

What Is Geography?

Geography , which comes from the Greek roots "ge" for earth and "graph" for "to write," covers a vast array of concepts linked to people, cultures, and earth. The field has only gotten more complex over time, as technologies including computerized mapping and data analysis lead to new tools such as Geographic Information Systems (GIS).

The five themes of geography effectively helped simplify this complicated nature of geography, making the subject more approachable for students and educators alike. 

Most geographic studies begin by learning the locations of places. Location can be absolute or relative.

• Absolute location: Provides a definite reference for locating a place. The reference can be latitude and longitude , a street address, or even the Township and Range system. For example, you might be located at 183 Main Street in Anytown, USA, or you might be positioned at 42.2542° N, 77.7906° W.
• Relative location: Describes a place with respect to its environment and connection to other places. As an example, a home might be located four miles from the Atlantic Ocean, 2.4 miles from the town's elementary school, and 32 miles from the nearest international airport.

Place describes the human and physical characteristics of a location.

• Physical characteristics: Include a description of such things as mountains, rivers, beaches, topography, climate, and animal and plant life. If a place is described as hot, sandy, fertile, or forested, these terms all paint a picture of the location's physical characteristics. A topographical map is one tool used to illustrate the physical characteristics of a location.
• Human characteristics: Include the human-designed cultural features of a place. These features include land use, architectural styles, forms of livelihood, religious practices, political systems, common foods, local folklore, means of transportation, and methods of communication. For example, a location could be described as a technologically advanced French-speaking democracy with a Catholic majority.

Human-Environment Interaction

This theme considers how humans adapt to and modify the environment. Humans shape the landscape through their interaction with the land, which has both positive and negative effects on the environment.

As an example of the human-environment interaction , think about how people living in cold climates have often mined coal or drilled for natural gas to heat their homes. Another example would be the massive landfill projects in Boston conducted in the 18th and 19th centuries to expand habitable areas and improve transportation.

Humans move—a lot, and ideas, fads, goods, resources, and communication all travel distances as well. This theme studies movement and migration across the planet. The emigration of Syrians during wartime, the flow of water in the Gulf Stream, and the expansion of cell phone reception around the planet are all examples of movement.

Regions divide the world into manageable units for geographic study. Regions have some sort of characteristic that unifies the area and can be formal, functional, or vernacular.

• Formal regions: These are designated by official boundaries, such as cities, states, counties, and countries. For the most part, they are clearly indicated and publicly known.
• Functional regions: These are defined by their connections. For example, a newspaper's circulation, or geographical area where it's distributed and read, can be considered the functional region for that newspaper. 
• Vernacular regions: These include perceived regions, such as "The South," "The Midwest," or the "Middle East"; they have no formal boundaries but are understood in mental maps of the world.
• State Capitals of the Fifty US States
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• How Many People Share Your Birthday?
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Lesson Plans & Activities 9-12

Please see below for lessons and activities.

Biology/Ecosystems  ||  Geography  ||  Geology  ||  Global Change  ||  Natural Hazards  ||  Oceans/Coasts  ||  Water

Biology/Ecosystems

Wildlife and Contaminants - Lessons A series of lessons targeted to high school students that introduces the topic of ecotoxicology and guides students through the scientific process of gathering raw data and drawing conclusions about the impact of contaminants on wildlife.   

Become a Phenology Observer - Activity The National Phenology Network (sponsored by the USGS) is looking for volunteers to help monitor plant and animal species found across the United States. Learn how to monitor plant and animal phenology and sign up to contribute new observations to the national phenology database. Make this a classroom project!

Lessons on the Lake: An Educator's Guide to the Pontchartrain Basin - Lessons Louisiana's Lake Pontchartrain Basin is home to 1.5 million people and an estuary ecosystem with enormous biodiversity. Activities in the educator's guide help students in grades 5-12 gain an understanding and appreciation of the Basin and teaches them the skills to identify environmental concerns, make changes, and solve problems.

Land and People - Activity Students look at interactions between people and the environment in three regions of the United States: Cape Cod, Los Angeles, and the Everglades. Targeted to grades 7-12.

Interactive San Francisco Bay Data - Activity Look at plots of data collected from the water of San Francisco Bay, then generate your own plots using real data. How does a change in light penetration compare to water temperature? Does a change in salinity correspond with a change in chlorophyll?

Topographic Map Resources for Teachers - Lessons and Activities This directory level site includes links to various resources on topographic maps, how to obtain them, read them, their history, and map projections and includes links to various teaching activities and modules. It is the one-stop shop for learning about, using, and teaching topographic map concepts.

I ntroduction to Soils - Lessons A series of lessons teaching high school students about soils and linking them to climate, vegetation, and geology.

Exploring Maps - Lesson Exploring Maps  is an interdisciplinary set of materials on mapping for grades 7-12.  Students will learn basic mapmaking and map-reading skills and will see how maps can answer fundamental geographic questions.  The map images and activities in this packet can be used in various courses, including geography, history, math, art, English, and the sciences.   

Constructing a 3D Topographic Map - Activity This exercise uses clear plastic take-out lids, each marked with a different elevation line, and stacked to produce a 3D topographic map. It includes a base map of Angel Island (San Francisco Bay) but can be adapted to any local topographic feature.

27 Ideas for Teaching with Topographic Maps - Activity Contains 27 ideas for teaching with the approximately 57,000 topographic maps that the USGS offers.

Map Mysteries - Lesson Sample questions to use with USGS topographic and thematic maps as starting points to uncover mysteries about the cultural and physical geography of the Earth.

Corn Maze Geography - Activity Visit a corn maze and use these activities to learn about maps and geography.

How to Use a Compass with a USGS Topographic Map - Activity Learn to navigate using a topographic map and a compass.

Map-It: Form-based Simple Map Generator - Activity Enter the longitude and latitude of points to plot on a simple map. Download a postscript version of the resulting map.   Satellite Imagery

Tracking Change over Time - Activity Enhance students' learning of geography, map reading, earth science, and problem solving through landscape changes recorded by satellites in space.

AmericaView - Lessons USGS is a partner in AmericaView, which has lesson plans and other education resources for working with satellite imagery. Mostly targeted to grades 6-12.

Journey Along a Field Line - Activity A sixteen-page comic book about the Earth's magnetic field. Travel down through the interior of the earth then back up into the ionosphere to learn how the magnetic field works.

Antarctic Ice Sheet - Lessons and Activities This report illustrates, through a paper model, why there are changes on the ice sheet that covers the Antarctica continent. By studying the paper model, students will better understand the evolution of the Antarctic ice sheet. Animations mentioned in the Educator Guides are no longer available.

Chicxulub Impact Event - Lessons and Activities This report illustrates, by means of two paper models, how dinosaurs may have become extinct as a result of an asteroid impact. By studying the paper models, students will better understand the mass extinctions that have been part of the Earth's history. Animations mentioned in the Educator Guides are no longer available.

Crinoids - Lessons and Activities This report illustrates, through the use of a paper model, how crinoids lived and became fossilized. By studying the paper model, students will better understand the flower-like animal that is referred to as a "sea lily" and its ocean-floor environment. Animations mentioned in the Educator Guides are no longer available.

How to Construct Four Paper Models that Describe Island Coral Reefs - Activity This report contains instructions and patterns for preparing a set of four, three-dimensional paper models that schematically illustrate the development of island coral.

Make Your Own Paper Fossils - Lessons and Activities This report illustrates, by means of paper models, how two organisms, a trilobite and a nautiloid, became fossils. The report is intended to help students and others visualize the size and shape of a trilobite and a nautiloid, the environment in which they lived, and the circumstances of their fossilization and subsequent discovery. Animations mentioned in the Educator Guides are no longer available.

Make Your Own Paper Model of a Volcano - Lessons and Activities

This report contains instructions and a pattern for making a three-dimensional paper model of a volcano. This model is intended to help students and others to visualize a stratovolcano (inside and out) and to learn some of the terms used by geologists in describing it.

Paper Model Showing Motion on the San Andreas Fault - Activity This report contains instructions and patterns for preparing a three-dimensional model that schematically illustrates the fault motion that occurred during the Loma Prieta earthquake of October 17, 1989, in California. The model is intended to help students and others visualize the process of fault slip during earthquakes.

Sand Dunes - Lessons and Activities This report illustrates, through computer animations and paper models, why sand dunes can develop different forms. By studying the animations and the paper models, students will better understand the evolution of sand dunes.

How to construct 7 paper models that describe faulting of the Earth - Activity This report contains instructions and patterns for preparing seven three-dimensional paper models that schematically illustrate common earth faults and associated landforms.

2 Paper Models Showing the Effects of Glacial Ice on a Mountain Valley - Activity This report contains instructions and templates for preparing three-dimensional paper models of two features a mountain valley partly filled by a glacier and the same valley after the glacier has melted. Included are brief descriptions of how such glaciers form, how they erode the landscape, and what kinds of physiographic features they produce.

Earthquake Effects - Lessons and Activities The report is intended to help students and others visualize what causes earthquake shaking and some of the possible results of the shaking. Animations mentioned in the Educator Guides are no longer available.

Landslide Effects - Lessons and Activities This report illustrates how four different types of landslides (slide, slump, flow, and rockfall) occur and what type of damage may result. The report is intended to help students and others visualize what causes landslides and some of the possible result of the landslides. Animations mentioned in the Educator Guides are no longer available.

Plate Tectonics Tennis Ball Globe - Activity Create a mini globe that shows the major plate boundaries of the world (scroll to page 15).

This Dynamic Planet Teaching Companion Packet - Lessons and Activities This Teaching Companion is intended to assist teachers to teach plate tectonics, primarily for grades 6–14.

Schoolyard Geology - Activities - under construction Structured activities use man-made features that are found in a typical schoolyard to demonstrate geologic principles.

The Lifecycle of a Mineral Deposit - Activities A teacher's guide for hands-on mineral education activities. Designed to meet the National Science Standards, this product includes 10 activity-based learning exercises that educate students on basic geologic concepts; the processes of finding, identifying, and extracting the resources from a mineral deposit; and the uses of minerals. Geared for fifth through eighth grade science teachers.  

Collecting Rocks - Activity Learn about different types of rocks and how to identify and collect them.

What's in My Soil? - Activity Students separate, examine and identify the major components of soil to better understand how these components give soil its unique physical characteristics.

Introduction to Soils - Lesson This complete lesson plan teaches students how soils develop and provides links between soils, climate, vegetation, and geology. Includes materials for both teachers and students (handout, puzzle, field and lab sheets).

Graded Bedding - Activity Students are introduced to the concept of graded bedding, in which particles are sorted by size as they settle out of suspension. Students will discover that water is a good medium to separate and sort particles, and that particles have different behaviors in water and air.

Geologic Age - Activity Students investigate radioactivity as a tool for measuring geologic time.

Global Change

Greenhouse Gases - Activity Students observe and contrast thermal properties of three major greenhouse changes over time for dry air, water-saturated air, carbon dioxide, and methane.

Evaluating Glacier and Landscape Change - Lesson In this lesson students interpret USGS data in multiple formats and draw conclusions based on the data presented. 

Natural Hazards

Tabletop Earthquakes - Activity Construct a simple earthquake machine to demonstrate the principles of seismology. Includes supporting instructional material. 

Size and Occurrence of Floods - Activity Students use macaroni or beans to calculate the statistics of floor recurrence (see back side of poster).

Living with a Volcano in your Backyard - Activities A three-unit guide that provides science content and inquiry-based activities about volcanoes of the Cascade Range for middle-school students, with an emphasis on Mount Ranier. Includes more than 30 activities, a field guide, glossary, and supplementary information.

Predict an Eruption! - Activities This highly interactive site uses animations, illustrations, activities, and quizzes to show how eruptions at Mount St. Helens were accurately predicted by USGS scientists, then allows students to predict an actual eruption using real data.

Oceans/Coasts

The Fragile Fringe: A Guide for Teaching about Coastal Wetlands - Background Information and Activities Material to use for developing a comprehensive study of coastal wetlands.  Includes background information, suggested activities, glossary, references, and reading list. Activities can be demonstrated by the teacher or performed by students. Emphasis is on Gulf Coast wetlands.   

Hands-on Experiments to Test for Acid Mine Drainage - Activities Fourteen very basic exercises use home-made litmus paper and household items to test creek water for acid mine drainage and to look at plants, bacteria, and insects living in the water.

Ask a River to Text You with a WaterAlert - Activity Incorporate real-time data in the classroom by receiving instant, customized updates about water conditions at a specific river through WaterAlert.

Outreach Notebook for Groundwater - Lessons Five groundwater-related lesson plans for grades 6-8, complete with forms, diagrams, and supporting information. Although these were designed to be taught by an instructor and a water professional working together, a thoughtful educator could easily handle the lessons on their own.

CBSE NCERT Solutions

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Class 9 Social Science Geography Assignments

We have provided below free printable Class 9 Social Science Geography Assignments for Download in PDF. The Assignments have been designed based on the latest NCERT Book for Class 9 Social Science Geography . These Assignments for Grade 9 Social Science Geography cover all important topics which can come in your standard 9 tests and examinations. Free printable Assignments for CBSE Class 9 Social Science Geography , school and class assignments, and practice test papers have been designed by our highly experienced class 9 faculty. You can free download CBSE NCERT printable Assignments for Social Science Geography Class 9 with solutions and answers. All Assignments and test sheets have been prepared by expert teachers as per the latest Syllabus in Social Science Geography Class 9. Students can click on the links below and download all Pdf Assignments for Social Science Geography class 9 for free. All latest Kendriya Vidyalaya Class 9 Social Science Geography Assignments with Answers and test papers are given below.

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We have provided below the biggest collection of free CBSE NCERT KVS Assignments for Class 9 Social Science Geography . Students and teachers can download and save all free Social Science Geography assignments in Pdf for grade 9th. Our expert faculty have covered Class 9 important questions and answers for Social Science Geography as per the latest syllabus for the current academic year. All test papers and question banks for Class 9 Social Science Geography and CBSE Assignments for Social Science Geography Class 9 will be really helpful for standard 9th students to prepare for the class tests and school examinations. Class 9th students can easily free download in Pdf all printable practice worksheets given below.

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13 Unexpected and Fun Geography Lessons To Enhance Your Curriculum

Students can travel across the globe without leaving the classroom!

With the right geography lesson, students can travel around the world without ever leaving the classroom. Teachers of any grade and subject can incorporate geography into their curriculum to help students gain a global perspective and understand the world around them. From students learning to locate different cities, states, and countries on a map to understanding time zones and where their clothing comes from, we asked teachers to share their favorite tips and fun geography lessons to inspire students’ curiosity about the world. Here’s what they had to say:

1. Hold a mock geography bee.

Fourth graders in Ashley Peterson’s class often play Kahoot! before dismissal. She recently held a mock geography bee using Kahoot! to teach geography concepts and help kids prep for the National Geographic GeoBee . National Geographic has multiple geography-themed Kahoot! games available, with topics including State Stats, Source to Sea, and The First Americans. Learn how to use Kahoot! for a mock geography bee in your classroom .

2. Explore the world through pen pals.

Set up a pen pal exchange with a teacher in another city or country to help kids practice their writing skills while gaining a global perspective. Bring the experience to life by ending the year with a Skype chat where kids can finally “meet” their pen pals.

3. Put up a wall of clocks.

Help students start to understand the geography of time zones by putting up a wall of clocks in your classroom. Set one clock to universal time and label it Greenwich, England. Choose a variety of major cities throughout the US and the world to label the other clocks and set them accordingly. Point out the clocks at different times throughout the school day. For example, in the morning when students in your class are just starting school, talk about what students in other time zones might be doing. You can also use the clocks as a starting point to explain how longitude and time zones are related.

4. Travel with technology.

Technology teacher Melinda Klecker teaches fun geography lessons by having her students design travel brochures. She asks students to select different states. They each research their chosen state and two cities in it to include in the brochure. It’s a great way to incorporate writing, technology, graphic design, and geography into a single project.

5. Put the world into perspective with Google Earth.

Anytime fourth grade teacher Julia McIntyre talks about her personal travels, she uses Google Earth to show students the distance between their school and her destination. “It really puts it into perspective for them,” she says. Now you can also use Google Earth to follow National Geographic Explorers , including those working to protect the oceans through National Geographic’s Pristine Seas initiative. Josh Williams’ students explore the Pristine Seas program and use Google Earth to analyze how places around the world have changed over time.

6. Create autobiographical island maps.

Students in Amy Getty’s sixth grade class start off the year by creating maps of islands that illustrate their lives. They first fill out an autobiographical survey and then use their creativity and knowledge of landforms and symbols to design their maps.

7. Play a global game of hide and seek.

Mystery Class , which Christina Michelle plans to try with her students next year, includes fun geography lessons that help kids understand longitude and latitude while learning about continents, countries, and cities around the world. Kids start by gathering data about Earth, based on latitude, longitude, and seasonal changes in sunlight. Then they investigate clues and compare their data, narrowing down their search to find 10 secret sites around the globe.

8. Map character journeys.

When teaching about literary settings, Jessica Brookes suggests having kids create a map of the main character’s travels throughout the story, including a title, scale, key, and compass rose. Reading specialist Melody Arnett says a simple way she incorporates geography is by helping her class figure out where in the world each book they read takes place. “Sometimes it’s obvious … ‘This is a folktale from Thailand,’” she says, “and sometimes we infer based on clues from the story.”

9. Study the geography of ocean currents.

In this activity , students use maps to learn about ocean currents, research case studies of ocean spills, and discuss the role of oceanographers.

10. Engage fast finishers.

Here’s an idea to keep your fast finishers actively learning after they’ve finished their classwork. Runa Zaman suggests photocopying a stack of blank world maps and asking kids to label them. Students can even receive extra credit or a small prize based on the number of countries they label correctly.

11. Map your classroom.

Introduce spatial concepts without ever leaving the classroom. You can practice with familiar places, using this National Geographic activity to help your students understand the world around them—starting with their own classroom.

12. Hold the whole world in your hands.

Play Throw the Globe by tossing a beach-ball-sized inflatable globe around the classroom. When a student catches it, they must tell the class which continent or ocean their right thumb is touching. If they know something about the location, they can also share it with the class.

13. Get to know foods around the world.

Are your students hungry for knowledge about the world’s food production? National Geographic’s MapMaker Interactive layers show leading crop production by country on an interactive map. Challenge your students to think about what the map doesn’t show—like where crops may grow in the future or where the crops travel when they are exported.

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Solutions for Class 9 ICSE Total Geography Morning Star

2025 syllabus.