What do you think?
Rate this book
The Ultimate Geography And Timeline Guide
New unmarked copy
- GenresGeography
353 pages, Paperback
First published July 31, 2000
1 person is currently reading
19 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
May 31, 2022
NOT A CURRICULUM, no matter what the book's back cover says. This is a collection of ideas, *not* a curriculum. I would even say "guide" is too strong a term. It's an Idea Book. Marketed as an Idea Book, I might feel differently. Maybe. (Probably I wouldn't have bought it at all)
TL;DR: do not buy. Also, heads up I'm a smidge cross... mostly at myself, for shipping this across the Pacific without a whole lot of in-depth research first -- but a fair bit at the publisher, too. Repeat: do not buy. Just do not.
Also, to the teacher or parent who feels overwhelmed by this book, or a bit guilty / ashamed because you spent money but aren't using it much, or any variation thereof: let go of the ugh feeling you have when you see it.
This isn't a curriculum, and implementing most of the ideas is going to require a whole lot of research & prep work by the teacher... not to mention buying even more stuff to *do* the idea. Full details below, for anybody who cares.
* * * * *
To be clear, I ordered this based on a YouTube reviewer who said she didn't use most of it, except the outline maps which she used a ton. Fine -- I need outline maps, a big variety of them, so I'll get it and consider anything else a bonus.
There are no outline maps in the book! Instead, there's a sticker in the back with a registration code so you can download "digital content" (only a small portion of which are outline maps). I encountered an error while registering, and am still waiting to hear back from GeoMatters, but... I wouldn't have bought and shipped the paper copy if I knew I'd have to download and store them electronically! Might as well buy electronic files. Or, better, get an enormous, thorough (and global) collection FOR FREE here:
https://d-maps.com/continent.php?num_...
I didn't want to do the downloading and organizing, so I bought this book. This Ultimate Geography book. That doesn't have outline maps in it. Or many maps at all, really.
So. That stinks. =D
Okay, so back to the content of the book *as printed*: here are some other things I'd like to have known before ordering. Settle in with a cuppa!
I. Just the Basics (59 pages): for a geography teacher who doesn't know anything about teaching or geography, everything summed up in fewer than 60 pages! It's like TikTok, but make it 1990s Word Perfect aesthetic.
Who is this book for?? A teacher/homeschool parent who needs these basic definitions is not going to be able to process, prioritize or manage the info dump of the subsequent 200 pages. (Don't worry -- GeoMatters has another several products to help!)
Again... who is this for?? A person needing the definition of auditory learner is *not* going to know how to prioritize and interpret "concise" without help. We bought this ultimate guide... tell us what you recommend!
The section continues thus. Laminate or don't laminate? What are the five themes of geography? One paragraph summaries of the dominant religions worldwide. What a student notebook is and how to set it up.
II. Making Geography Come Alive (18 pages)
Fun and Games! Geography in the Real World!
^^ The only meaningful sentence in that paragraph is the first one. Everything else is filler, an ideas dump which will (sorry to harp on this) overwhelm a teacher whose level is so close to beginner that they don't know what an auditory learner is.
NOT A CURRICULUM. A curriculum outlines a plan, then maybe suggests ways to adjust it for your specific situation. Bare minimum gives specific recs by approximate age or development level. This Ultimate Geography Guide leaves all the work of figuring all that out to the buyer of their Ultimate Guide.
Other ideas in this section include starting a stamp or coin collection, and a few suggestions for current events. Here's one for magazines:
I mean... honestly. This cost me USD $37 plus UPS International shipping.
The "Geography in the Real World" section suggests visiting "Little Havana, Little Italy, Chinatown, etc" -- very practical for most American classrooms and/or homeschool families, I'm sure. Also, an American Chinatown isn't *China*...seems safe to assume the same holds for the others. YES to normalizing the diverse heritage of Americans, YES to visiting Little Havana for learning about Cuban-American culture, NO to visiting Little Havana for your Cuba geography study.
Another one in this section proposes using a chocolate chip cookie & toothpick to simulate an archaeological dig... what?
And then some memory games with flashcards, a "game" where you take off your shoes and make a list of all the places they are made, and a treasure hunt using compass directions (there isn't any guidance on how to teach compass skills).
Moving on.
III. Geography Across the Curriculum (62 pages)
Somewhat better content here, although again it feels obvious to anyone experienced in schooling, and unclear when I put on my "total newbie who doesn't know any pedagogy at all" hat.
Chapter 7 finally provides specific, step-by-step (for incorporating geography into a study of Hans Brinker). While I won't be doing this lesson, and don't really love Unit Studies, this content is is more in line with a curriculum & what I thought I was buying based on the back cover shouting that it's "An Award-Winning K-12 Geography Curriculum." Chapter by chapter of Hans Brinker has suggested discussion questions and possible geography-focused items to map.
Several references in this section to other products sold by GeoMatters which will do for you what you need done. (This is fine! But I didn't pay USD $37 to read marketing for their other products. Put that in an appendix, not the meat of my Ultimate Guide)
Chapter 8 is for science, chapter 9 for math. While the ideas are fine, it is again a hodgepodge of too many options that puts a big burden on the teacher/parent to organize and plan.
Chapter 9 is for history, which is longer, but also more obvious? Almost entirely US History. Thumbs up for mentioning some great sub-Saharan African kingdoms, but take away even more points for doing so only as part of a slavery study. Chapter 9 is particularly noteworthy in their choice to title one section of this US Geography via [US] History section "Birth of a Nation." Come on!! That very particular title has a very particular connotation. If you must use a childbearing metaphor (must you, though?) either "America's Birth" or "A New Nation Is Born" are right there.
Chapter 10 is about using the internet to see photos of stuff and do research
My edition of this book (4th) is copyright 2018.
About 50 suggested websites, half of them unfamiliar to me. Looking forward to scoping them out.
IV. Conquering the Continents (70 pages)
I almost feel like I'm beating a dead horse at this point, but... do we really need the Pax Americana name for this??? /sigh
Anyway! Solid, useful content here! Proper curriculum-grade content! And I don't think you need to wait for middle school or high school to do this work!
Also! Asia and Africa get nowhere near reasonable pages *or* details despite being home to the vast majority of humans! Only a note that they are big and you should take more time if you can! But the Ultimate Geography Guide doesn't give you enough content for that! Good luck, mystery user!
I'm sorta shouting now but really!!!!!!
Love the specificity in these sections, though. Really, I do! That is not what my son would call "a sarcasm"-- it is 100% genuine. It is what I expected from most of the book: specific, useful guidance on what and how to teach which then I can go off and adjust to fit my needs.
V. Tour Through Time: Timelines (14 pages)
What is a timeline? How to make one?
You don't know? It's this excellent thing I can't wait to tell you about! Let's do one together, I love this stuff! <-- actual truth, if a geography teacher who didn't know about teaching or geography were to ask me about how to keep track of time with their students.
Appendices & Indices
This is where you find out about the digital content you have to download. This is how I know there are only 19 outline maps included in the purchase (they sell another outline map product -- my error, I guess). Seem to be a lot of timeline print + cut + paste stuff there, though, and absolutely miles of worksheets.
Fin
TL;DR: do not buy. Also, heads up I'm a smidge cross... mostly at myself, for shipping this across the Pacific without a whole lot of in-depth research first -- but a fair bit at the publisher, too. Repeat: do not buy. Just do not.
Also, to the teacher or parent who feels overwhelmed by this book, or a bit guilty / ashamed because you spent money but aren't using it much, or any variation thereof: let go of the ugh feeling you have when you see it.
This isn't a curriculum, and implementing most of the ideas is going to require a whole lot of research & prep work by the teacher... not to mention buying even more stuff to *do* the idea. Full details below, for anybody who cares.
* * * * *
To be clear, I ordered this based on a YouTube reviewer who said she didn't use most of it, except the outline maps which she used a ton. Fine -- I need outline maps, a big variety of them, so I'll get it and consider anything else a bonus.
There are no outline maps in the book! Instead, there's a sticker in the back with a registration code so you can download "digital content" (only a small portion of which are outline maps). I encountered an error while registering, and am still waiting to hear back from GeoMatters, but... I wouldn't have bought and shipped the paper copy if I knew I'd have to download and store them electronically! Might as well buy electronic files. Or, better, get an enormous, thorough (and global) collection FOR FREE here:
https://d-maps.com/continent.php?num_...
I didn't want to do the downloading and organizing, so I bought this book. This Ultimate Geography book. That doesn't have outline maps in it. Or many maps at all, really.
So. That stinks. =D
Okay, so back to the content of the book *as printed*: here are some other things I'd like to have known before ordering. Settle in with a cuppa!
I. Just the Basics (59 pages): for a geography teacher who doesn't know anything about teaching or geography, everything summed up in fewer than 60 pages! It's like TikTok, but make it 1990s Word Perfect aesthetic.
A visual learner receives information best through pictures, diagrams and other images. A person who receives best by hearing is an auditory learner and enjoys lectures, songs, stories and oral material. A kinesthetic learner understands best through touch and hands-on interaction.
Who is this book for?? A teacher/homeschool parent who needs these basic definitions is not going to be able to process, prioritize or manage the info dump of the subsequent 200 pages. (Don't worry -- GeoMatters has another several products to help!)
A good classroom map isn't cluttered with unneeded information. It isn't necessary to have highways on a classroom USA map, for example, unless you're planning to do a lot of travel. Choose a map that's both colorful and concise.
Again... who is this for?? A person needing the definition of auditory learner is *not* going to know how to prioritize and interpret "concise" without help. We bought this ultimate guide... tell us what you recommend!
The section continues thus. Laminate or don't laminate? What are the five themes of geography? One paragraph summaries of the dominant religions worldwide. What a student notebook is and how to set it up.
II. Making Geography Come Alive (18 pages)
Fun and Games! Geography in the Real World!
It's simple: choose a theme and learn about it from the perspective of people living in other places. The parameters are up to you, including length, amount of detail, and specific objectives. A class can work together on one or two themes, groups can work on a theme together, or individuals can pick their own theme.
^^ The only meaningful sentence in that paragraph is the first one. Everything else is filler, an ideas dump which will (sorry to harp on this) overwhelm a teacher whose level is so close to beginner that they don't know what an auditory learner is.
NOT A CURRICULUM. A curriculum outlines a plan, then maybe suggests ways to adjust it for your specific situation. Bare minimum gives specific recs by approximate age or development level. This Ultimate Geography Guide leaves all the work of figuring all that out to the buyer of their Ultimate Guide.
Other ideas in this section include starting a stamp or coin collection, and a few suggestions for current events. Here's one for magazines:
Subscribe to several news magazines, both for students and adults. They're an excellent source of information for current events. Pull items into class time as appropriate. For some students, the information stays longer if they read it in print than if they hear it. Of course, the opposite is true for auditory learners. Using a variety of sources will help meet various learning styles.
I mean... honestly. This cost me USD $37 plus UPS International shipping.
The "Geography in the Real World" section suggests visiting "Little Havana, Little Italy, Chinatown, etc" -- very practical for most American classrooms and/or homeschool families, I'm sure. Also, an American Chinatown isn't *China*...seems safe to assume the same holds for the others. YES to normalizing the diverse heritage of Americans, YES to visiting Little Havana for learning about Cuban-American culture, NO to visiting Little Havana for your Cuba geography study.
Another one in this section proposes using a chocolate chip cookie & toothpick to simulate an archaeological dig... what?
And then some memory games with flashcards, a "game" where you take off your shoes and make a list of all the places they are made, and a treasure hunt using compass directions (there isn't any guidance on how to teach compass skills).
Moving on.
III. Geography Across the Curriculum (62 pages)
Somewhat better content here, although again it feels obvious to anyone experienced in schooling, and unclear when I put on my "total newbie who doesn't know any pedagogy at all" hat.
Chapter 7 finally provides specific, step-by-step (for incorporating geography into a study of Hans Brinker). While I won't be doing this lesson, and don't really love Unit Studies, this content is is more in line with a curriculum & what I thought I was buying based on the back cover shouting that it's "An Award-Winning K-12 Geography Curriculum." Chapter by chapter of Hans Brinker has suggested discussion questions and possible geography-focused items to map.
Several references in this section to other products sold by GeoMatters which will do for you what you need done. (This is fine! But I didn't pay USD $37 to read marketing for their other products. Put that in an appendix, not the meat of my Ultimate Guide)
Chapter 8 is for science, chapter 9 for math. While the ideas are fine, it is again a hodgepodge of too many options that puts a big burden on the teacher/parent to organize and plan.
Chapter 9 is for history, which is longer, but also more obvious? Almost entirely US History. Thumbs up for mentioning some great sub-Saharan African kingdoms, but take away even more points for doing so only as part of a slavery study. Chapter 9 is particularly noteworthy in their choice to title one section of this US Geography via [US] History section "Birth of a Nation." Come on!! That very particular title has a very particular connotation. If you must use a childbearing metaphor (must you, though?) either "America's Birth" or "A New Nation Is Born" are right there.
Chapter 10 is about using the internet to see photos of stuff and do research
A search engine is a web-based software program designed to find information on the Internet. Simply enter specific keywords into the search field...
My edition of this book (4th) is copyright 2018.
About 50 suggested websites, half of them unfamiliar to me. Looking forward to scoping them out.
IV. Conquering the Continents (70 pages)
I almost feel like I'm beating a dead horse at this point, but... do we really need the Pax Americana name for this??? /sigh
Anyway! Solid, useful content here! Proper curriculum-grade content! And I don't think you need to wait for middle school or high school to do this work!
Also! Asia and Africa get nowhere near reasonable pages *or* details despite being home to the vast majority of humans! Only a note that they are big and you should take more time if you can! But the Ultimate Geography Guide doesn't give you enough content for that! Good luck, mystery user!
I'm sorta shouting now but really!!!!!!
Love the specificity in these sections, though. Really, I do! That is not what my son would call "a sarcasm"-- it is 100% genuine. It is what I expected from most of the book: specific, useful guidance on what and how to teach which then I can go off and adjust to fit my needs.
V. Tour Through Time: Timelines (14 pages)
What is a timeline? How to make one?
You don't know? It's this excellent thing I can't wait to tell you about! Let's do one together, I love this stuff! <-- actual truth, if a geography teacher who didn't know about teaching or geography were to ask me about how to keep track of time with their students.
Appendices & Indices
This is where you find out about the digital content you have to download. This is how I know there are only 19 outline maps included in the purchase (they sell another outline map product -- my error, I guess). Seem to be a lot of timeline print + cut + paste stuff there, though, and absolutely miles of worksheets.
Fin
June 9, 2009
We are still going through this but it is an awesome book for homeschool!
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews