Overview
Students will locate the participating schools on a map and research their country, culture, and environment.

Objectives
Students will:

Acquire geographical understanding by studying the world in spatial terms. Use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of the geography of the interdependent world in which we live.

Time
Approximately one 45 minute class period.

Materials

Computers with Internet access Large wall-size world map with latitude and longitude lines Push pins, sticky dots/stars, different color pens, etc. for plotting the schools If students plot the schools individually, the following free downloadable world maps are available from National Geographic if they do not already have one: Small World Map (.gif format) Large World Map (.pdf format)

Teacher Preparation
All students should participate in locating the participating schools and plotting them on a world map. Students can take turns locating a participating school on the large wall-size world map and / or can work in small groups to locate the participating schools on a small world map.

Procedure

	Geography Activity: Find the Participating Schools Geography How does climate affect your environment? Cultural Exchange Materials: List of Participating Schools Large wall-size world map with latitude and longitude lines Push pins, sticky dots/stars, different color pens, etc. for plotting the schools. Optional: the following free downloadable world maps are available from National Geographic: Small World Map (.gif format) Large World Map (.pdf format) Instructions: Go to the current List of Participating Schools or the Letters of Introduction conference of the Discussion Area and locate the schools on a wall-size world map. Place a push pin, sticky dot, etc. to mark the location of the schools. You may find it helpful to print the list of schools.   After you've located several schools on the map, select one or two located in a different country or geographic region and research their country, culture, currency, environment, etc. You can use the following URLs to find out more information: Lonely Planet: Destinations CIA World Factbook Yahoo! Country Directories Infoplease: Countries of the World   After you've researched the school's country, etc., go to the Letter of Introduction conference of the Discussion Area and ask them what life is truly like in their home and share with them the information that you have found.   Return to the List of Participating Schools frequently and plot the schools as they register for the project.