Home Geography for Primary Grades · Lesson XXVII · Unit 6: Maps and forms of land and water
27. A trip to the highlands
Goal: Your child retells a story that reviews every land and water form so far, then names each one in a picture or on a real walk.
You'll need
- The book open to the story
- The sand tray (to build the view from the summit)
- Optional: a real hike up a hill with a view
- A geography notebook (any notebook kept just for these lessons) and a pencil
What's in the book
A story told by a child: after Uncle Tom's tales of mountains, Father takes Fred and the narrator up a high hill near the city. They climb the slope, it grows cooler, they see the city from the summit, eat lunch by a spring and watch its rill grow, and Father points out a lake, an island, a peninsula, an isthmus, a bay, a strait and a plain, until a colorful sunset.
The lesson, step by step
Getting ready
Read the first part, about getting ready. Ask: What did the children wear? What did they carry?
We put on thick shoes that the stones would not easily cut.
Ask: What would you pack for a hike?
The climb
Read the climb. Ask: How did the land change as they climbed? (fewer farms, smaller trees, bushes, rocks; cooler and cooler)
On the summit
Read the part on the summit.
"On the summit at last!" cried Fred,
Ask: Why did the trees look like bushes and the men like babies from the top?
Spot the forms
Read the rest of the story. Each time Father names a form (lake, island, peninsula, isthmus, bay, strait, plain), your child holds up a hand and says what it means.
Build the view
In the sand tray, your child builds the view from the summit: the hill, a spring and rill, the lake with an island, a peninsula with an isthmus, a bay, a strait, and a flat plain to the east. Ask them to point and name each one.
Tell it back
Your child retells the story in their own words, from waking up early to the sunset.
A real trip
If you can, take your own trip up a hill with a view. At the top, name what you see: hills, valleys, streams, a lake, the town, a plain. Look at which way is north.
Afterwards
Write a short story of your own trip, or of an imagined trip, using at least four geography words.
Tip
On a hike, bring water, wear sturdy shoes as the children in the story did, and stay on the trail.
Answers to the book's problems
The children wore thick shoes and carried stout sticks and a knapsack with bread, cold meat, crackers, a cup and towels. As they climbed, the farms ended, the trees grew smaller, there were bushes and rocks, and it grew cooler. From the summit, things far away look small. Father named a lake, an island, a peninsula and its isthmus, a bay, a strait, and a plain.
Worked out for this site from the scan. If a number in your copy differs, trust the book.