Geography

We are all members of the human family. Our goal is to develop a global perspective, and the study of world cultures forms a cornerstone of our curriculum.

With this goal in mind, we teach world cultures from age three and up. Our youngest students work with specially designed maps and begin to learn the names of the world’s continents and countries.

International studies continue throughout our course of study. The curriculum integrates art, music, dance, cooking, geography, literature, and science. Students prepare and enjoy dishes from all over the world. They learn traditional folksongs and dances in music, and explore traditional folk-crafts in art.

Physical Geography

The Primary Globes (Ages 3-5): These are specially prepared globes for the very young child that isolate single concepts of globe study—how land and water are shown, and the corresponding shapes of the continents that they learned from the puzzle maps.

The Puzzle Maps: These are specially made maps in the forms of intricate, color-coded, wooden jigsaw puzzles representing the continents, the countries of each continent, and the states of the U.S. They are presented to the children at an early age, and are at first enjoyed simply as challenging puzzles. Soon, however, the children begin to learn the names of given countries As soon as the children can read they begin to lay the puzzle pieces out and place the appropriate name labels to each as a reading exercise.

Land & Water Formations: These materials are designed to help the very young child understand basic land and water formations such as island, isthmus, peninsula, strait, lake, cape, bay, archipelago, and so on. At first, these concepts are represented by three-dimensional models of each, complete with water. Then the children learn to recognize the shapes on maps, and learn about famous examples of each.

Transference to maps: Introduction to written names and various forms of maps, along with early study of the flora, fauna, landscapes, and people of the continents.