Geography:  Grades K - 12
Trail Guide to U.S. Geography
Author:  Cindy Wiggers
Publisher: Geography Matters
For more information or to order:  www.homeschoolingfromtheheart.com
We are delighted to offer this series in our catalog!

This spring I decided this was the year for my boys to memorize the 50 States and their capitals. That's why I was so excited to receive the Trail Guide to U.S. Geography to review for this newsletter -- the timing couldn't have been better.  After adding this resource to our study of the U.S., we have realized that there is so much more to know about the geography of our great country than just states and capitals!  Thankfully, author Cindy Wiggers has made it easy to incorporate the often overlooked, but important subject of geography into our already packed homeschool routine.

The Trail Guide to U.S. Geography is divided into three distinct sections: Geography Trails, Points of Interest and a Geography Through Literature unit.  The neat thing about this program is that you can use all three parts or just choose to utilize one or two of them.  This curriculum utilizes student notebooks, which are a great way for kids keep a record of what they're learning.  On the Geography Trail students use an atlas or almanac to answer two geography drill questions each day.  There are three different "trail markers" each signifying the difficulty level based on your student's age, grade or skill level.  Younger students will take the first trail and may need moms help to research and answer the questions.  Each day students take 5 - 10 minutes to find the answers to their Geography Trail questions and record them in their Geography notebook.  The author recommends using the Children's Millennium Atlas of the United States, but also states that any good U.S. atlas should be sufficient.  Older students will also need to have access to a good current almanac like The World Almanac and Book of Facts.  Of course, all the answers to the daily drills are found in the back of the manual.  I did find it easier to copy a week's worth of questions onto a sheet of notebook paper for my students so they weren't both trying to refer to the book at the same time.

For a more indepth study of U.S. Geography, step off the trail and visit some Points of Interest.  This section is divided into two categories, Mapping and Trail Blazing. Each week there are two lessons each focusing on a different state.  In each lesson Cindy provides instructions for labeling specific points and drawing/ shading different landforms, on an outline map.  Students continue to build their geography notebooks by adding their maps and other projects, including an illustrated geography dictionary that the student creates!  Trail Blazing provides more opportunity for students to sharpen their research skills while learning about each state.  Due to the flexibility of the guide, you can choose to just cover the basics of each state in one school year, or dig deeper extending your study of the 50 states over two years. Instead of learning the states in the order they were admitted to the Union or alphabetically, the Trail Guide to U.S. Geography groups them into regions.  This makes it easier for children to get a better mental picture of not only where a state is located, but also the entire group of states that make up a region of the country.  For each state the author provides an interesting fact that the student adds to their "Matter of Fact" form in their notebook and they are encouraged to record other interesting facts on this form as well.  A unique feature of this study of the 50 states is the order in which they are studied. There are lots of project ideas provided in each lesson and I found the variety of options to be very helpful when dealing with two children who each learn in their own unique "style"!   Any of the forms required for the projects are included in the back of the book for you to reproduce as needed.  Outline maps are required for the Mapping activities and are not provided in the book (the author recommends Uncle Josh's Book of Outline Maps).  Students will need access to an encyclopedia, the Internet, library or other sources in order to complete some projects while other projects will just require the use of a good atlas or almanac.

The third and final section of the Trail Guide to U.S. Geography is the Geography Through Literatureunit.  In this fun unit, your family can go on an adventure with the Lewis and Clark Expedition by reading The Captain's Dog, My Journey with the Lewis and Clark Tribe.  This six-week unit can be used to wrap up your study of U.S. geography or it can stand on its own and be used anytime during the school year.  The weekly lessons incorporate vocabulary, mapping, and a variety of activity suggestions.

The Trail Guide to U.S. Geography provides lots of guidance while allowing for (and encouraging) flexibility and this is just the balance most homeschool moms need! The manual is easy to navigate and I am very impressed with how thoroughly material is covered.  This resource is destined to be a favorite with homeschool families for years to come!


Making the Grade:  A++
Cost:  $18.95
Value for Your Homeschool Dollar:  10
Review provided by Cindy Prechtel, Editor