Exploring the whole wide world can be quite daunting in the homeschool classroom. Here is a simple idea to introduce your homeschool students to some of the highlights of the world through famous monuments.
Start With Ten Monuments
Pick examples of famous buildings or iconic statues from around the world. Statue of Liberty, Colosseum, Eiffel Tower, Christ the Redeemer, Chichen Itza, Taj Mahal, Gateway of India, Great Wall of China, Sydney Opera House, Red Square’s St Basil’s Cathedral, or any other historically significant and famous monument will do.
Provide the Back Story
No monument is interesting to a child till you reveal its historical importance. Talk about one monument per day. Make sure you read up the back story beforehand to be able to answer the many questions you are sure to be asked. Have images ready in form of photos and videos to show your homeschool students.
Make a 3D Model in Craft Class
Now that the homeschool students know what the monument is all about get them to design a model. Explore the different materials that they can use to make a 3D model of the historically significant landmark. Have them construct one based on the original. It doesn’t have to be to scale or perfect. It should simply bear a good resemblance to the original.
Display the Monument Models on a World Map
Once you have constructed all ten monuments it is time to put them in perspective on the map of the world. You can buy a large sized map of the world and spread it out on the dining table. Now take each of the monuments and place them on the city/ country that they are found in. You can now include a discussion about each country out of the ten you have chosen.
Study the Countries in More Detail
Now that a general sense of interest has been invoked for each of the ten countries that the monuments are found in, you can speak more in detail about these countries. Talk of history, culture, language, popular celebrities, food and more from each country. Talk about which place they would like to visit and why they chose it. This is a great way to study the world.
