Taking a little trip around the world — the Geography Bee

This post is almost a month too late — but then, better late than never, or so the adage goes.

The Geography Bee is a fascinating competition, held every year by the National Geographic Society, it is clearly a nerdy test of geography trivia and possibly a lot more daunting for 4th grade to 8th grade students than the Spelling bee. You might think that what’s the big deal in knowing the capital of Latvia, but geography for me has been in many ways the one subject that opens our minds to the world around us. I had a chance for the first time last year to volunteer at my local elementary school to run Geography Bee “prep sessions” and this year was no exception. Only this year, I think I was a little better prepared having seen the format of the preliminary round last year.

Together with another parent volunteer who has a shared interest in geography, we were able to spend lunch time with about 6–10 kids on an average, going through the many places in the world at a glance, having some fun with maps, talking about the unique landmarks, cultures, places, sights and trivia that are spread all around the world, and it was a very fulfilling experience. I’m almost tempted to build a geography “trivia” database of questions and answers — I know there are many out there, but something that would be engaging and delightful for young kids to participate in together with their parents.

Why is the geography bee important? To me, its in helping kids understand that the world we live in is full of interesting places. Its in creating a sense of wonder and hopefully a desire to travel and see these places. Its in realizing that while we live in comfortable enclaves of social uniformity, the natural wonders, places and people around us are like an incredibly beautiful puzzle, waiting to be visited, experienced and understood. Here are some “easy” questions — my own — to get you started:

This round’s difficulty is “The Frog” — taken from the saying “Frog in the well” — the Frog is completely knowledgeable about his/her habitat a.k.a. The Well. (Of course, the saying really talks about someone who might be so comfortable in one’s own surrounding that he/she does not have an open mind about what’s outside the well, but that’s another post altogether.)

Consequently, one would expect this first Round to be real simple.

1. Which state is in Midwest of the United States? Ohio or New Hampshire
2. Which state is a large producer of oranges? Florida or Wisconsin
3. Which state has the ski resort of Aspen? California or Colorado
4. Through which state does the Rio Grande flow? Texas or Washington
5. In which state would you be able to hike on the Appalachian Trail? Virginia or North Dakota
6. Which state is famous for its fresh lobster? Maine or Michigan
7. In which state would you be able to attend college at Harvard University? Massachusetts or Illinois
8. In which state might you find large herds of bison? Wyoming or Pennsylvania
9. In which state would you find Kenai Fjords National Park? California or Alaska
10. In which state would you find the Great Salt Lake? Utah or Vermont

Take a few minutes, and hopefully you can sit down with your 3rd or 4th grader, and run through these to get started. I’ll try and get a post written about Round 2 — The Gopher, soon.