Explanation This Powerpoint presentation was created as an introductory lesson to 4th grade world geography. In this first lesson, students learn that the world is organized into 7 continents and *4 oceans. Students learn the names and locations of each continent and ocean and practice "traveling" back and forth between them. Students also learn that the world can be organized into hemispheres and students learn the names of the 4 hemispheres. There is a link included to a Brainpop video to review the concepts taught in this lesson and also to provide a bit more information on the continents and oceans. At the end of the lesson, there is a quiz on the names/locations of the continents/oceans to see how much students have learned and what reteaching/review is necessary before moving onto the next lesson.
*In 2000 The International Hydrographic Organization officially recognized a 5th ocean, known as the Southern Ocean, so teachers may wish to update this presentation to include the additional ocean.
Suggestions As mentioned above, this lesson would best be taught as an introductory geography lesson at the elementary level. Some prior knowledge of cardinal directions (north, south, east west) would be helpful but is not required, as long as a visible compass is provided for the guided practice portion of the lesson. This lesson is targeted at 4th grade curricular objectives, but may also be useful in grades 2-3. Having globes as models to explore in addition to this presentation would be helpful in emphasizing the three-dimensionality of the Earth and the actual locations of the landmasses/oceans to scale. Using an interactive presentation tool, such as a Smartboard, is best for this lesson presentation so students can kinesthetically participate by drawing travel routes on the given maps to concretely solidify their learning and demonstrate their new knowledge. As selected students draw/trace the travel routes on the Smartboard, all students at their seats should also be provided with copies of the same map so they can participate and practice as well. This would ensue that all students are engaged in the lesson work. A Brainpop video is included so a subscription with username/password is required for viewing. For the lesson assessment at the end of the presentation, students can use whiteboards or pencil and paper to record their answers and can self-check their work as the teacher reveals the correct answers. The teacher can then use this information on what students know to plan for future instruction. This lesson assessment can also be given as pre-assessment prior to teaching this lesson and then again at the end to measure progress. After teaching this lesson, teacher can move onto more specific/advanced concepts and skills such as landforms, intermediate directions, latitude and longitude, the names/locations of the countries that make up each continent, and a more in-depth study of their own country's geography.