Making a Globe

A basic globe shape

Students at my school have been facing some geography challenges. We participate in a number of geography events, including the National Geographic Geography Bee, which covers grades three through eight. But how do you help kids grow as geographically-aware and interested students?

One of my kids gave me an interesting Christmas gift this year.  It was a little box with some bamboo skewers, some wooden finials, a base, and — best of all — five reproduction maps of famous globes on a one- page template. Insert tab A into slot B, flip the roundels at top and bottom onto a bamboo skewer, attach the finials to top and bottom, and voila! You have a copy of Mercator’s 1547 globe on your desk.

Ok, that’s cool. But it’s a mathom: a thing for which there’s no immediate use, but which we’re unwilling to throw away (to…