Atlas Globetrotting

Teaching Pre K-8, Feb 2005 by Drasek, Lisa Von

Weighty matters

One hopes that every school is able to have a world atlas that is a work of art. These beauties are huge over-sized volurnes that are almost too heavy to lift off the shelf. love watching our students balanced on their knees poring over the leaves of one of these. Because these books cost over $100, atlases of this kind are usually shared resources housed in a school library.

I could have used up all my allotted words this month gushing about the Mztional Geographic Atlas of the World (National Geographic, 2005, ISBN: 0-79227543-8). Completely revised and weighing in at over 10 pounds, this atlas features the most up-to-date information and three special full-spread world maps. The latest edition of the classic offers readers a plethora of political and physical maps, fascinating information on each country and city maps.

Owners also receive a user ID and password to access patches with the updated information for your atlas. For example, the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve in Colorado was recently added to the website for update.

One of the most fascinating aspects of the website are ArcGlobe Animations, where a satellite world view is displayed, then animated so the view can drift from the clouds to a land mass. From there it can move from the entire country, to a sky view of buildings, right down to a landmark like the Taj Mahal.

And if you are fortunate enough to be able to have two world atlases, another exquisite production is The Great World Atlas (Dorling Kindersley, 2004, ISBN: 0-756-60507-5). Containing almost 100 maps created using state-of-the-art satellite imagery, this volume provides a thorough overview of world geography.

Lisa Von Drasek is Children's Librarian at the School for Children, Bank Street College of Education, in New York, NY. E-mail: Lisa@TeachingK8.com