Review: Daily Geography Practice

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Title: Evan-Moor’s Daily Geography Practice Grade 2
Author: Sandi Johnson 
Genre: Educational book – geography grade 2
Publisher: Evan-Moor Educational Publishers
Physical Description: 196-page paperback 
List Price: $29.99
ISBN: 9781557999719 
To Buy: $21.75 at Timberdoodle Co. 


Synopsis:

In Daily Geography Practice, Grade 2, 36 map lessons introduce basic geography skills and over 80 geography terms. What a perfect hands-on approach to geography instruction!
The geography skills presented at Grade 2 include:

- Globes
- Compass roses
- Map keys
- Map grids
- Physical maps
- Road and street maps
- Rural, suburb, city, and state maps
- Population and product maps
- Tourist and weather maps
- Political maps of the United States and the world

About the Daily Geography Series:

While most children are fascinated with the study of geography, many teaching parents are discovering that without regular exposure, newly acquired information is not retained. If this is the case with your child, or if your state requires a grade-appropriate geography study, then Daily Geography Practice is what you are looking for.

With just fifteen minutes a day your child will become geographically literate. Each of the lessons is correlated to the National Geography Standards and includes a resource page that consists of a statement of the geography standard and skill being addressed, background information and suggestions for introducing the skill, geography vocabulary and definitions, and an answer key for the lesson.

Your child's page will be made up of two geography questions for each day of the week that progress in difficulty from Monday to Friday and an extra credit challenge question at the end of each week. Short, sweet, and to the point, Daily Geography Practice will assure that your children are geographically astute.

Esme’s Review (while packing a big tub with her animals for a voyage in the living room):
 
If I was in a boat, this book helps me know the instructions for how to get to the right isle.  You use a map to know the directions to go.  North, east, south, or west – you can look at the map to see if you’re going to the mountains, or to the picnic area, or to the bridge…

What Mom Liked:

I have a confession to make.  I requested this book “knowing” it would be above almost-4yo Esmé’s level, but it was the lowest grade level available for review at the time, and I REALLY wanted some ideas to supplement our geography themes and trips across the globe.

Surprise!  While I have to do much of the reading for her, she’s been breezing through the concepts in this Grade 2 book.  The first two chapters were strictly review, and since then she’s easily mastered the compass rose, directions, keys, and other basic map skills like describing where locations are in proximity with others.  (It helps that we spent about two months reviewing maps and continents at the beginning of this school year.)

I like the brevity of the lessons.  While the synopsis suggests 15 minutes/day, we finish a week’s lesson in about 15-30 minutes, depending on how much effort Esmé wants to put into the challenge project.  It’s just about right for us.

The illustrated maps are kid-friendly and quite fun for Esmé.  Since this is a reproducible book, I make copies for Esmé to review and do her challenge on.  There are also transparencies of the maps that would be quite handy in a classroom setting, though not so much for us.

The vocabulary and teacher summary let me know exactly what skills are being taught or emphasized.  Overall, it’s nice to know we’re covering the basics of geography skills with such ease and effortlessness.

What Mom Didn't Like: 

Nothing I don’t “like” – however, I do want to note that I don’t see this as a stand-alone text, but rather a foundation for other geography studies and a way to keep geography skills fresh and in use.  We read lots of books and stories about places around the world, and the map skills Esmé is learning will help her identify where these places are and grasp a better overview of the incredibly vast world God created.

Timberdoodle Co. has a large selection of geography materials:  curricula, games, stories, puzzles, and more.  They also offer complete core curriculum packages which include this Evan-Moore geography series.

Thanks to Timberdoodle Co. for the review copy of this book.