Rating: 4 stars
The other morning at school Ben had an "outdoor day," where his class spent the entire morning outside. All the things they normally did inside were simply done on the school playground and various other places. I found out maps were a big part of the morning when he came home and asked me if there was a compass on my smartphone.
The next day I sent in this book with him to class--we had looked at it a few times at home, but I thought his teacher might want it as well. I try hard not to be annoying and suggestive with books, but I sometimes I can't help myself!
This educational book introduces the importance of maps, the different kinds of maps, and how to draw and read maps to young children. It does all of this in a storybook format, with a young schoolgirl as a narrator and her Boston Terrier Penny as a cute diversion from the teaching that is going on.
Lisa's class is making maps--which are, her teacher explains, "a picture of something from above. It's like flying over that spot in an airplane." The class draws out the school on the blackboard (remember those?), completely with a title, key, symbol, scale, compass, and labels.
Lisa and Penny decide to map out her bedroom, and then map where Penny hides her hidden treasures out in the yard. They map the route to Penny's friend's house, then the local park where Lisa rides her bike and Penny rolls in the grass. The book ends with a map of the world, where a hopeful dotted line shows a map of where Lisa would like to travel one day.
The book is a great reference for parents and teachers to teach their kids how to draw a map--of their bedrooms or yards or communities.
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