Let Me Tell You About…

Let Me Tell You About… lesson plan

Classmates collaborate to illustrate—and then present a mock talk show—about a country’s land formations and features. Prepare bright neon topographical maps and a riveting script!

  • 1.

    <STRONG>Choose a country.</STRONG> What can you learn about a country from a relief or topographical map? How have natural forces and humans shaped the landscape? With a partner, create a topographical map of a country of your choice. Find where towns and cities are located among mountain ranges, on plateaus or plains, or on lowlands near water. Discover more about the country’s location and physical characteristics as you prepare to report your findings in a talk-show format.

  • 2.

    <STRONG>Make a topographical map</STRONG>. Using Crayola Erasable Colored Pencils, outline a large map of the country on paper. Indicate neighboring countries or bodies of water if you wish. With Crayola Glue Sticks, attach the map to cardboard. To show oceans, lakes, and rivers, fill those areas with blue neon Crayola Model Magic®.

  • 3.

    Choose more neon colors to represent other land elevations. Add lowlands to your relief map. For plateaus and mountains, add extra layers of Model Magic to build height, changing colors according to the elevation. Pinch up mountains to their relative height.

  • 4.

    <STRONG>Label the features.</STRONG> Draw small paper flags, cut them out with Crayola Scissors, and color them. Erase the name or other information you want on the flag. Leave your erased areas white or fill with contrasting colors. Outline words if you wish. Use Crayola School Glue to attach flags to toothpicks. Air-dry the glue. Place flags into the Model Magic in their correct positions. Add a color key.

  • 5.

    <STRONG>Do your broadcast.</STRONG> With your partner, write a talk-show script to tell your classmates what you learned about the country’s terrain and geography. Present it to the class in a compelling way to spark more interest in the country.

Benefits

  • • Students understand the differences between flat maps and relief/topographical maps. </P>
  • • Students recognize how forces such as earthquakes, volcanoes, water, and wind—as well as human actions--have altered the Earth’s surface. </P>
  • • Students work in pairs to demonstrate their knowledge of relief maps by building and labeling a topographic map and presenting their information in an interesting talk-show format to classmates. </P>

Adaptations

  • • Find out about other types of maps such as contour maps. In small groups, create a map of one area using several types of maps. Discuss the benefits of each form. </P>
  • • Use this learning experience as a culminating activity for a map or geography unit. </P>
  • • Draw a Peter’s Projection world map on a large outdoor area with Crayola Sidewalk Chalk or Sidewalk Paint. Mark all the countries, rivers, capitals, oceans, and other major features. </P>
  • • Assessment: Observe how cooperatively students work on all phases of their projects, from planning to presentation. Look for accuracy in details and a lively presentation. </P>