GLOBAL CONNECTIONS INQUIRY
Exploring Global Connections
DAY 1 ACTIVITY
15-20 Minutes
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Find out how you are connected to people and places all over the world
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Paper or notebook
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Pencil, pen, or other writing tool
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“Where Is That From?” handout (optional)
THIS WEEK
We’re thinking about
the question:
“How do the things we use connect us to people and places around the world?”
Your challenge this week is to create a “My Global Connections Infographic” showing how the items you use every day connect you to faraway people and places.
Let's Get Started!
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Did you know that every day you use things that come from far away?
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When you get dressed in the morning, you are putting on clothes that came from all over the world!
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When you eat lunch, some of your food has come from very far away, too.
You are also connected to people around the world. They make many of the things you use every day.
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Have you ever played on a keyboard like this one?
Have you ever wondered where it was made?
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When we flip the keyboard over, there is a sticker on the back.
The sticker says that the keyboard was made in China!
Let’s use a map to help us learn where items like the keyboard come from.
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Make the map bigger by clicking on it.
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Do you see the keyboard on the map? It’s in the country of China.
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Do you see the star and the words “United States of America”? Is that where you live?
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Just think – the keyboard had to cross most of the world to get from China to the United States of America.
Can we find more items that came from far away?
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Perhaps you can kick a soccer ball pretty far… but not as far as this soccer ball has traveled.
This soccer ball was made in the country of Pakistan.
Many of the fruits and vegetables we eat come from other places in the world.
These bananas come from the country of Ecuador. The blueberries made the long trip from the country of Chile!
Have you noticed the tags inside your clothes? They tell where your clothes were made.
This shirt says "USA," which is another name for the United States of America. But the shirt was not made in the USA. It was made in the country of Egypt!
Let’s use the map again to help us learn where the soccer ball, bananas, blueberries, and T-shirt come from.
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Make the map bigger by clicking on it.
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Do you see the soccer ball, bananas, blueberries, and T-shirt on the map?
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All these items travel very far before we use them!
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Which item travels the farthest to get to the United States of America?
Your challenge this week:
Create a “My Global Connections Infographic” that shows how the items you use every day connect you to faraway people and places.
Today, you will discover where the items that you use come from.
Think about:
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Where do you think the items in your home came from?
You're going to:
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Go on an object hunt! Look around your home to find out where items came from.
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Write down the following information on a piece of paper (or use the “Where Is That From?” handout if you like):
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The name of the item
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The country that the item was made in
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Happy Hunting! Here are a few ideas to think about that will help you in your search:
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Look for labels that say “product of” or “made in.”
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It’s okay if an object doesn’t have a label that says where it was made – just move on to another item!
Find out where in the world the countries your items came from are located on a map!
Watch the “Countries of the World” video.