Science, Science and Technology, Social Studies, Geography

Grade 1- 3

Objective

Students will use their research skills to learn about countries of their choice. They will use their understanding of a computer graphics program to create at least two slides. They will demonstrate their ability to save and retrieve information from their disks.

Directions

Each student selects a country and then researches the following aspects about the country:

• the capital city
• the flag
• language(s) spoken
• the country's continent
• fun facts

After the students finish their initial research, have each student create two slides about his/her country. The first slide must name the country and illustrate the flag. The second slide shows the map outline of the country, lists the continent on which the country is located, and indicates where the capital is located. Finally, have the students draw pictures on their second slide that show what makes each country well known. Teachers can have the students plan their pages before going on the computer by using the Countries Templates activity sheets.
Each student should have his or her own disk on which to save the created slides. The students should print copies of their slides so that the teacher can edit the slides.
The teacher should then provide a schedule for compiling the slides into one class slide show. Organize the students into small groups according to the continents where their countries are located, and then load the slides continent by continent.
As the students load their two slides, they can record their voices explaining what the slides depict and choose transitions between slides. Don't forget to view the entire slide show with the class!
Extension
This activity could be accelerated so that the students create more than two slides relating to their countries. A further modification would be to have the students create a slide for each of the seven continents. These could then serve as transitions between sections of the slide show. A student could also create a mini slide show of numerous slides highlighting a specific country.

Resources

• Kid Pix or other graphics program
• Internet connection
• printer
• world maps
• slide templates
• encyclopedias or other reference books
• copies of the Countries Templates sheets (see the activity sheet link below)