Every Social Studies class should include beginning lessons in introducing geography. Geography skills form a solid foundation for other history exploration. Of course, if you’re teaching a full Geography course, you’ll need to do a deeper dive. Developing this solid foundation for either depth is vital to starting your students off on the right foot.
In my classes, my first unit not only focuses on introducing geography but also hits the basic Social Studies skills. Since most students come into Social Studies courses with zero skills or background knowledge, it’s important to start from scratch.
First Lessons in Introducing Geography
- Introducing the Five Themes of Geography – I do this in a number of ways. First, I provide students basic definitions through an interactive lecture with spiral questioning. Next, and more importantly, I allow multiple days for my students to complete a Five Themes of Geography centers activity. This not only teaches the skill of collaboration but also addresses each of the five themes through individual skills that will be used throughout the course.
- Reading Latitude and Longitude – Another fundamental lesson for geography students is how to read longitude and latitude. Teaching the definitions are easy, but for students to learn the skill, they have to practice, practice, practice! We practice with maps, we practice on the board with drawings, and my students made paper dolls based on longitude and latitude climate assumptions. This is such a fun exercise!
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Reinforcing Skills in Geography
- Maps, maps, and more maps! – In this very first unit, students should not only learn about different types of maps, but also how to read and use maps. Map reading skills will be basic foundational skills for every unit students will do in geography and history throughout their academic career. Teaching students to make maps, including mental maps, is also a key element that should be included in the first few days of introducing geography.
- Vocabulary, vocabulary, and more vocabulary! – Unlike vocabulary lessons students have done in the elementary classroom (or in language arts classes), vocabulary in the Social Studies classroom takes on a whole new meaning. Students must not only learn to define key terms, but also be able to identify context and determine significance for Social Studies application. Furthermore, vocabulary should include a visual component to help students grasp the information and retain it for future lessons and topics.
Culminating Projects for Introducing Geography
With the introduction to geography unit being all about the skills, the best way to culminate the unit is through the application of those skills. Student projects are great for this! Projects where they collaborate are even better. In my classes, students complete a cartography project and present it to the class. This project reinforces skills but also teaches another foundation for my class – collaboration.
While this first unit on introducing geography is a short unit, it’s vitally important for all students to set the foundation for geography and history courses. Preparing students for success at this level is key. Lessons and instructional strategies can vary. Even the vocabulary you teach may be different class to class based on your focus. However, the skillsets that students learn in this first unit should always be the teacher’s focus.
If you don’t have the time to create these resources for your own classroom, find ready-made and low-prep lessons in my store! You can also find the complete unit on the Introduction to World Geography. If you’re looking for an entire course on Geography, find it here.
Happy Teaching!
