Journeys from China

An excellent series of five lessons on China awaits you and your young geographers. In these lessons, learners engage in hands-on activities, watch streamed video, access websites, and complete activities in cooperative groups in order...

Young scholars examine Marco Polo's route from China to Sumatra. They investigate the geography and climate, the religions and architecture of modern Indonesia. They study the use of spices and why they were so important in medieval times.

Construct a personal journey time-line. First, learners explore the travels of Tweega, the giraffe, in the book Chee-Lin, A Giraffe's Journey by James Rumford. Then they compare and contrast regions in the story and reflect on their own...

Students study the route from Hormuz to Constantinople that was traveled by the Polos. They explain the importance of Constantinople in medieval time and discuss its location, and outer wall structure.

Middle schoolers work in groups and use treasure cards and maps to go on a treasure hunt to several regions in China. They prepare a presentation on the geography and culture of the area that they are assigned to.

America began well before Jamestown, well before Plymouth Rock. An informative video introduces the 1542 Spanish expedition that explored the Channel Islands off the coast of southern California. The voyage started with the attempt to...

Sixth graders explore world geography by completing a mapping activity in class. In this Silk Road lesson, 6th graders identify the reasons the Silk Road was created in Ancient China and the locations it traveled through. Students...

Students journey back in time to early China. In this Chinese history lesson, students explore China's geography; read about the Shang, Zhou, and Han Dynasties; compare Confucianism and Daoism. Students create PowerPoint presentations...

Students follow Marco Polo's route to and from China. They explore the geography, local products, culture, and fascinating sites of those regions. They record their findings.