Encourage tinkering with ideas, relationships, connections. Set up situations where students have to find information not readily available in school texts. Provide opportunity for students to design open-ended explorations of the concept. Provide multiple options so students can plan a unique "proof" of learning.

Map Making

Activity (Choices):
1. Create a map showing a volcano, two mountain ranges, three islands, two lakes, one river, two peninsulas, one isthmus and one bay.
2. Create an island without a legend. Include forms such as rivers, mountains and swamps. Finally, draw two pictures of the island, one from the view of a plane and one from the view of a boat.
More Activity Choices:
1. Given a list of twenty to thirty land and water forms, the students are to construct an imaginary island containing at least twenty forms. The island should depict a theme with all of the forms portraying it.
2. Divide the students into small groups. Give them a list of places such as a gas station, public library, newspaper stand, bank, and restaurant. They are to draw a map that shows the nearest relationship of the list of places to the school. They are to find the shortest route, without backtracking, from the school to all of the listed places. The maps should be detailed with 3-D figures.
3. Evaluation: Completion of maps.