When studying history, it is helpful to also study geography. Knowing where something is located, what is around it, and what the climate is like offers clues as to the cultural climate at any given place in history or currently. Therefore we use these techniques to learn countries and capitals as part of our history/geography studies.
After talking about Why You Should Teach Geography, I want to share with you some great ways to implement teaching geography. A great way to start is to learn countries and capitals. Here are five great ways to work on learning the countries and capitals.
1. Map Drawing/Labeling
As part of our North Star Geography curriculum we are creating our own atlas. Taking the time to label and color each map is very helpful in learning where each country is located and what their capital is. You read it when you look it up, you write when you label the map, and you visualize it when you color each one.
I am a strong proponent of a classical education. As part of a classical education it is important to memorize terms in the grammar phase as building block for later. Think of things like addition and subtraction, as well as dates in history, scientific elements, and states/countries and capitals.
A great way to learn countries and capitals is by using flashcards. Here are some FREE Printable Flags of Countries Flash Cards that you can add the capitals to. They are great for repetition and easy to carry around. You can even find apps such Stack the Countries
We love the Animaniacs in our house. They have many educational songs to help you learn to remember things. Here are the Nations of the World – slowed down with scrolling nation names.
Then there are the Rock the Capitals Videos that put the nations and capitals together.
Just like music, playing games is a really fun way to learn things that might otherwise be boring or feel like work to your children. Playing trivia games, matching games, and bingo offer fun options for the whole family to participate in and learn with.
- GeoDice: Educational Geography Board Game – 50 jumbo sized cards, and 5 easy games to play all in one set!
- GeoCards World – Educational Geography Card Game – The goal of this two-sided board game is to name countries and capitals that start with the letters on the five Letter Dice, and that are within the continents on the two Continent Dice
What I really love about teaching/learning with puzzles is that you can accommodate so many ages. You can find puzzles that have large pieces and more simplistic information on them for younger kids, and you can find much more complicated puzzle with more and smaller pieces as well as more intricate details to be learned on the face of them.