Thanks to everyone who helped!
Here is my original request and the responses I got to this query:
I have a 6th grade Social Studies teacher that is looking for some fiction to read
to her class that highlights "geography" and travel. She wants something kind of
fun and adventurous.
It does not necessarily need to be world travel--it might focus on a particular
region--but she want to be able to tie it in with geography and mapping lessons.
She tried "80 Days" (Verne) but her 6th graders found it a bit stodgy and she was
trying to think of something more contemporary and modern in style.
Hatchet by Paulsen might be good. 6th graders usually find it exciting
& since it is a survival story
I would think mapping skills could be worked in as well.
I've just recommended to one of our 6th grade teachers the Lion Boy trilogy. We
were talking science fiction, but I appreciated the use of maps and the
geographical movement in the books. Perhaps this would fill the request for your
teacher.
I do a unit on world geography starting with the picture book Ben's Dream by Chris
VanAllsburg. A young boys falls asleep while studying for his geography test and
visits 10 different world landmarks in his dream.
I don't know that this is at all what's she's interested in, but what about
Scrambled States of America.Mandi Vissers
MVP* Magellan Voyage Project by Douglas Evens. Twelve-year-old Adam Story is
challenged by the deposed ruler of Babababad and his mongoose companion to become
the first youngster to travel around the world in forty days without an adult. 6th
gr reading level.
Jenny Goes to Sea by Ester Averill. The little black cat named Jenny, along
with her brothers and their owner Captain Tinker, sails around the world on a ship
called the Sea Queen. No RL listed.
Tripper's Travels by Nancy Kapp Chatman. Tripper the Dog keeps a scrapbook
detailing his travel to big cities all around the world.
Piratology: the Pirate Hunters Companion by various authors, ed by Dugald Steer .
Within the fictitious journal of an eighteenth-century sea captain, readers can
learn about the golden age of piracy--from storm-tossed sailing ships to
tantalizing treasure islands, from pirates' flags and fashions to their wily
weapons and wicked ways. g 2 - 5.
To the Edge of the World by Michele Torre. In 1519, after the death of his
parents, fourteen-year-old Mateo Macias becomes cabin boy to Ferdinand Magellan on
a dangerous journey in search of a route to the fabled Spice Islands. gr 5 - 8.
Cornelia and the Audacious Escapades of the Somerset Sisters by Leslie M.M.
Blume. Cornelia, eleven-years-old and lonely, learns about language and life from
an elderly new neighbor who has many stories to share about the fabulous adventures
she and her sisters had while traveling around the world. gr. 4 - 6.
Stowaway by Karen Hesse. A fictionalized journal relates the experiences of a
young stowaway from 1768 to 1771 aboard the Endeavor which sailed around the world
under Captain James Cook. gr. 5 - 9.
Dangerous Crossing by Stephen Krensky. In 1778, ten-year-old Johnny Adams and his
father make a dangerous mid-winter voyage from Massachusetts to Paris in hopes of
gaining support for the colonies during the American Revolution. gr. 2 - 4.
The Voyage of the Continental by Katherine Kirkpatrick. In 1866, young orphan
Emeline McCullough leaves her mill job in Lowell, Massachusetts, to head for
Seattle, Washington, aboard the steamship Continental, writing in her diary about
the intrigue, danger, and romance she encounters on her journey. gr. 5 - 8.
Away to the Goldfields by Pat Darby. Yearning for adventure and tired of farm
life in New Hampshire, sixteen-year-old Mary Margaret Malarkey journeys to
California in 1848 to find her father who arrived earlier to make his fortune in
the goldfields. gr. 5 - 9.
The Freedom of Jenny by Julie Bertinshaw. Jenny Estes and her family escape the
slavery of the Leopold plantation in 1840s Missouri and journey to Canada, but the
path is filled with tragic loss and physical hardship. gr. 5 - 9.
Also, consider the Diary books that are American Historical Fiction. They give a
lot of great information about the place and time. Also, some of them involve
journies and so have more than one location named.
Hope's Revolurionary War Diary by Kristiana Gregory.
Joshua's Oregon Trial Diary by Patricia Hermes.
My Name is America series
Dear America series
I taught 6/7th grade Geo. for many years and used a series of books by Roland
Smith. The main character goes to Africa in the first book, the Amazon in the
second and the Hopi Indian Reservation in the third. All are filled with
geography, travel and adventure. www.rolandsmith.com even has curriculum available
to use with the books.
Harry F. Coffill
hcoffill@egrps.org
Media Center Specialist
East Grand Rapids Middle School
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