Wild & Wonderful Wednesday: Got Geography!

Got Geography!
Poems selected by Lee Bennett Hopkins
Pictures by Philip Stanton
Greenwillow Books, 2006
Grades 3-6
Reviewed from purchased copy.

I knew the moment I read the title that I needed to get this book. My passion for geography demanded it.  The book did not disappoint.

I especially liked the first poem by J. Patrick Lewis where he briefly describes each of the seven continents.  It amazes me how much information about manages to squeeze in.  I plan to use this poem with my older students this coming school year.  I've decided to use this summer's reading theme (One World, Many Stories) as my theme for the upcoming school year. This poem fits in perfectly with that.  I also especially liked the poem by Kathryn Madeline Allen where she personifies the Equator, what a fun idea.  I might use this one to have my students personify each of the seven continents.

I confess freely that I am all about color.  I love bright cheerful colors and the illustrations in this book are full of them.  The bright colors help convey the idea that the world around us, however small, is a fascinating and interesting place, full of new places to see and new adventures to go on.  This book does encourage the travel bug, sigh, for those of us without the funds to do so, but it also encourages exploration of the seemingly small places around us.  It is amazing sometimes how much about the place I live that I am missing out on. Highly recommended for those who want to see the world.