In college, I knew a woman who loved looking at maps. She kept a world atlas by her bed. Instead of settling in with a novel or a TV show, she’d pick a place.
Knowing life may never take her there, she’d imagine what Auckland, New Zealand, was like. Or she’d open her atlas, shut her eyes and point, then learn all she could about her random choice.
More than memorization, her encyclopedic knowledge of places showed openness and curiosity.
That kind of knowledge is rare, judging by a survey released in May by the National Geographic Society. You’ve likely heard the appalling findings. In the Roper poll, 510 Americans ages 18 to 24 were surveyed.
A third of them couldn’t find Louisiana on a map, despite all the coverage of Hurricane Katrina. Nearly half couldn’t identify Mississippi. And two-thirds could not locate Iraq.
Cynthia Jones, principal at Emerson Elementary School in Everett, said it’s tough now to work geography curriculum into tight schedules. “There’s so much pressure on reading, writing, math and now science,” Jones said. “People have to find ways to incorporate geography.”
At Emerson, help is on the playground. This summer, a 20-foot-by-38-foot map of the United States was painted there by members of the Norwesco Telecom Pioneer Club, a volunteer group of Verizon employees and retirees.
The map is painted in bold colors with states, unlabeled, outlined in white.
“The kids play games on it,” Jones said. “They call out the states and play state tag. Or they’ll try to make it from the Pacific to the Atlantic going state by state, like hopscotch. The kids like it and use it a lot.
“We really do appreciate it,” said Jones, adding that Emerson lost an old playground map due to school renovations. “Our resources have gotten tighter and tighter, and we’re more and more reliant on the generosity of the community.”
Morrie Sachsenmaier, who retired from Verizon in 2001, headed a volunteer crew that painted maps this summer at Emerson and at Immaculate Conception-Our Lady of Perpetual Help School in Everett, where his two grandsons are students. A year ago, the group painted a U.S. map at Spruce Elementary School in Lynnwood.
“It’s a pretty big project,” said Sachsenmaier, describing the several-day process that begins with a light blue background, a big stencil, and spray paint to mark state borders. Wal-Mart donated about $800 for the paint used this summer.
Nationally, Telecom Pioneer groups have provided schools with maps for about 20 years, said Sachsenmaier, of Snohomish. Emphasizing literacy and civics, the group also sponsors a dictionary project, providing third-graders around the country with dictionaries containing maps and a list of U.S. presidents.
Sachsenmaier remembers learning geography as a kid. He thinks it’s important, even with information a mouse-click away. “The problem is, if the computer breaks people don’t know,” he said.
At Emerson, which has preschool through fifth grade, Jones said children learn continents in second and third grade. Washington state geography is covered in fourth grade. Regions of the United States are studied in sixth grade, she said.
“Our school is increasingly diverse,” Jones said. “It’s important to recognize that kids come from many backgrounds and cultures.” Emerson has students from 16 countries, she said. Besides English, students there speak Spanish, Russian, Vietnamese and many other languages.
“We want all of our kids to feel welcome,” Jones said.
In releasing the survey last spring, National Geographic Chief Executive John Fahey said, “Geography is what helps us make sense of our world by showing the connections between people and places.”
A playground map is a start.
Kids may not know their states, but at a tender age they know their world is a troubled place.
While Sachsenmaier was painting at Immaculate Conception, a visitor walked by with a little girl, “probably a preschooler.” The child looked at the U.S. map, he said, and asked the adult she was with a sad and telling question: “Where’s Iraq?”
Columnist Julie Muhlstein: 425-339-3460 or muhlsteinjulie@heraldnet.com.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
