A 6th Grade Field Trip to the Mapparium

A 6th Grade Field Trip to the MappariumKayla Scholl, Crit Obara, and Cameron Harrison

The MappariumThe three-story, stained-glass globe is one of the key attractions at the Mary Eddy Library. The Mappariums three-dimensional perspective of the world of 1935 is enhanced by A World of Ideas, an original presentation that features a rich orchestration of words, music, and LED lights to illustrate how ideas have traversed time and geography and changed the world.

Why the Mapparium?Students will be exposed to maps and globes in the classroom, but a visit to the mapparium will provide them with a different experience with maps. The light and sound show, to keep the students engaged in what theyre looking at. The Mapparium has not been updated in quite some time, so some of the boundaries shown have changed.

Prior to the TripPrior to the field trip, the students will each be choosing a country to research and do a presentation on. Students can choose any country, as long as each continent is represented. Their presentation will highlight important history and geography about the country, as well as information about the countrys economics and government. If students have a special connection to a country, they can present on that country.

Prior to the TripWhen students visit the Mapparium, they will be able to find their country on the globe and identify what kind of landforms and bodies of water are near their country and what other countries their country is near. Prior to the field trip the teacher and students will have dialogue focusing on how and why country boundaries change.

Field Trip

Students will enter the Mary Baker Eddy Library. Here, the class will observe some of the artifacts and gather around the string wall. Teacher will pose the question: What do you want to ask someone from across the globe?* The teacher will take students pictures prior to the field trip and post them here with their questions.Field TripStudent will walk through the Hall of Ideas and look at the fountain that shows the work hello in various languages.Students will enter the Mapparium for a light and sound show.

Field Trip

When the show is completed, the teacher will ask students to find the country they researched and look at the countries that surround it. Post-Field TripIn the days after the field trip, students will be presenting on the country they researched. These presentations will include economic and cultural factors of the countries.

The Mapparium and 4552 Maps and globes may be difficult for younger students to understand, because they are made up of abstract elements. As students get older, they are able to grasp these geographic concepts and ideas. Seeing the world presented in this way will enable students to compare various maps and help them develop skills like utilizing scale, identifying and determining absolute and relative locations, and utilizing direction.