Kiddos

A Olivia & Doudou learning journey

Follow land and water

How do land, water and growing places connect?

Follow landscapes from landforms and rivers to coasts, then notice growing places and their connections with communities.

Begin the journey

At your own pace.

Use one chapter at a time over several visits. Open the related notebook page only when it helps the conversation.

A discovery to listen for.

Can the child indicate the plateau's raised flat top and identify water around the island? Accept gestures before technical terms. Can the child show a joining tributary without tracing away from the main river? Can the child follow the island shore and identify the peninsula’s land connection? The child matches at least two crops with the growing places or positions shown and describes one connection.

  1. 1A labeled teaching landscape with mountains and a low valley at left, a broad raised plateau at upper right, a lower plain, a small hill and an island surrounded by sea. Olivia holds plush Doudou and points. Six definitions are integrated into the picture.

    Start here

    Mountains, Valleys, Plains & More

    Which two landforms look flat? How are they different?

    Identify and compare landforms by their shape and position.

    Explore this lesson
  2. 2An illustrated river flows from highland source through a joining tributary and a broad meander to a sea mouth. Labels explain source, tributary, bank, meander and mouth. Arrows show downstream flow. Olivia observes with plush Doudou from a protected viewpoint.

    Build on your last discovery

    A River's Journey

    Which way does the water go? What helps you tell?

    Trace downstream flow and distinguish source, tributary, bank, meander and mouth.

    Explore this lesson
  3. 3A coastal relief model shows a crescent bay, a peninsula connected to mainland, an island surrounded by water and a narrow strait between the peninsula and island. Olivia and Doudou examine it at a table.

    Build on your last discovery

    Where Land Meets the Sea

    Which land has water all the way around it?

    Distinguish an island and peninsula, and identify a bay and a strait from land-water relationships.

    Explore this lesson
  4. 4A connected farm landscape shows a wheat field, rows of apple trees and a vegetable garden. A cutaway reveals carrot roots below the soil. Olivia carries Doudou on a path near a grown-up.

    Build on your last discovery

    Fields, Orchards and Gardens

    What crop grows in the field here?

    Match wheat, apples and carrots to three pictured growing places.

    Explore this lesson

For teachers

A sequence you can adapt.

Follow landscapes from landforms and rivers to coasts, then notice growing places and their connections with communities.

Paper and a pencil or crayon; the pictures can be viewed on a screen. No purchase or travel is needed. Read the answer cues and offer a described or pointed response.

  1. Mountains, Valleys, Plains & More

    Make two land shapes: Identify and compare landforms by their shape and position.

    Return prompt: High and low places shape a landscape. Next, follow a river from its source toward the sea.

  2. A River's Journey

    Draw a joining river: Trace downstream flow and distinguish source, tributary, bank, meander and mouth.

    Return prompt: This river reaches the sea. Next, notice the shapes where land meets water.

  3. Where Land Meets the Sea

    Draw two different shores: Distinguish an island and peninsula, and identify a bay and a strait from land-water relationships.

    Return prompt: Land and water shape places. Next, look inland at fields, orchards and gardens where people grow crops.

  4. Fields, Orchards and Gardens

    Connect a growing place to a community: Match wheat, apples and carrots to three pictured growing places.

    Return prompt: A growing place connects with a community by routes. Next, compare different views of one place before turning it into a map.

Closing check: Tell a pretend journey and explain a connection, a useful destination and one way to care for the place.

Take this journey onto paper.

The poster pack includes every lesson in this journey. The companion includes parent conversations, classroom plans and a discovery record.

A3 poster PDFA4 poster PDFUS Letter poster PDFConversation & classroom guide