I second these Montessori approach apps!
Both my kids really liked these. We got them about a month ago for our “traveling collection” to keep them happy with new things on looong plane rides and airport layovers – and it was an absolute hit!
They are very simple, but hey, toddlers love simplicity and repetition :yes:
Got them! Thank you ever so much for pointing me in the right direction, Kerileanne99! karma to you
Found a great Resourse!
http://www.yourchildlearns.com/megamaps.htm#
Check it out! Free maps to print in any size, all from you home printer! Print, by continents or the world at once in mega size!
Probably not cheaper than your local print shop ( a very large print in black outline is only a few dollars here) but older kids will have fun putting it all together like a giant puzzle, and learn in the process.
We are loving the Montessori puzzle map apps. The kids have almost got south America covered now. By name, shape and position on the map. I am surprised at just how quickly they have learnt it, and credit this app for a substantial part of their memorizing it all, along with the map on the toilet wall! :biggrin:
So as my kids are still crazy about learning where all the countries of the world are. They listen to the utube countries of the world song before they watch magic school bus episodes…the first time they complained that I made them do it but now I suspect they ask for magic school bus so they can watch the Countries of the world song!
Anyway I found another good source for printable maps this one has everything!
http://d-maps.com/index.php?lang=en
The olympics are a great motivator for learning about the world. My kids even have an adopted country to follow. Natalya chose Lithuania, Tiana chose Turkey and Jaykob chose Russia. My money is on Jaykob for the win 
But they can all locate their chosen country and tell me something about it, so I am happy.
Manda- I Love the idea of an adopted country! I am not quite sure Alex appreciates much of what the Olympics entail, and I suspect it is a bit busy for her as we never even have regular tv on when she is in the room. The hilarious thing is that we just mute the volume! She will sit and watch it with no sound for as long as I let her, with mom and dad giving a bit of commentary lol
I asked her what her favorite part was, expecting to hear a sport–nope. The kid is just thrilled by all of the flags on the screen, excitedly calling out all the countries.
I shall ask her if she wants to choose a country today :yes:
Wow Manda! Congratulations! 
Your kids are into it! It’s awesome that they can tell you some info about their chosen countries. I want to organize the lessons I will be teaching Megan starting this month so everthing will go smoothly next month.
Kerileanne,
Thanks so much for the link you posted for the Montessori wooden puzzle. I added it to my looooog wishlist.
There have been so many great ideas on this post many Thanks to everyone! :biggrin:
I have been concentrating on teaching Cayden the US states lately. I found these great flashcards on Amazon for $4. They cover all the states and their capitals with about 35 countries and their capitals. I really like them because of their simplicity. The front of the card is the state name with a picture of the US with the state highlighted. On the back the name of the capital with a picture of the state with a dot showing the location of the capital.
I did have to laminate them so they won’t tear.
http://www.amazon.com/States-Capitals-Flash-Kids-Cards/dp/1411434854/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1344548700&sr=8-1&keywords=states+flashcards
I also have a foam floor puzzle of the states that he loves.
http://www.mindware.com/p/USA-Floor-Map-Puzzle/28120
I found some great culture lesson plans for free on www.languagelizard.com
James is loving the Olympics and he prefers to root for Aussies. He doesn’t like events where there are no Aussies.
Go James I hope you backed a winner! :biggrin:
For those who are starting with geography montessori print shops offers a free printable Pn Map
http://www.shop.montessoriprintshop.com/World-Continents-Pin-Map-Flags-and-Map-GeoF-89.htm?categoryId=-1
I am making it now hoping to use it in the morning!
and some other great stuff for free
We have been using some of the material from a homeschooling mom’s program that some of you may be familiar with, Confessions of a homeschooler- World Geography : Expedition Earth (it is actually subtitled a Journey Through God’s World, but honestly who can use it secularly if you prefer it, or supplement with your own families beliefs and still be amazed!) We had actually already been doing some of her ideas, like a passport for Alex when she ‘visits’ a country…But this saves me a tremendous amount of work and was available for immediate download at $15.
http://www.confessionsofahomeschooler.com/world-geography
Here are some of the things included for something like 30 countries:7 Wonders of the World
World Lap Book
Geographical Locations
Mapping Skills
Science: Ecosystems Study
Geography Vocabulary
People of the Region
How to Pray for the Regions
Christmas around the world
Children like me
Science: Animals mini-books for each country
Science: Animal Classification Study
Food and recipes
Craft activities
Country Songs
Review Games
Reports & Quizzes
We have also purchased subscriptions to Time For Kids, which you can adapt on the digital version for younger audiences! SO COOL!
http://www.timeforkids.com/around-the-world/
And one from the Cricket Magazine folks for a slightly older set, I think recommended age is about 9? But the pictures, ideas and information are fabulous and we use it as a supplement! Not to mention it introduces that whole continuing level of interest and excitement when it arrives in the mail and she gets to learn about a new country. I always get a preview so I can be prepared with extra EK info, and save them as books because I can imagine these will be useful for a while.
It is this one:
http://www.cricketmag.com/FAC-FACES-Magazine-for-Kids-ages-9-14
found those and thought about sharing
http://www.familiesoftheworld.com/
http://www.thelittletravelers.com/
http://www.master-comm.com/worldlvillage.html
any body tried them??
I believe I have seen the Australian video of Families of the world. I was dissapointed in a few ways. The language has been Americanized. The girl says chickens, and never chooks. She calls a soft drink bottle a soda bottle. There are many more instances like this. I know these are minor things but it irked me a bit. I just wanted a little more authenticity. I guess it is irrelevant with countries that don’t speak English. I grew up in Australia and live in the US. I wanted to give my son a little more Aussie exposure.
My little complaint aside, the video I did watch was enjoyable, clear to understand, well edited and produced. They don’t talk much about the country, or many facts which are abundant in other sources. They just detail the day in a life, narrated by a rural Australian girl and an urban Australian boy.
My local library has many of them. I think it is time I started borrowing them again now that James can watch them.