Each
year thousands of schools in the United States participate in the National
Geographic Bee using materials prepared by the National Geographic Society.
The contest is designed to encourage teachers to include geography in their
classrooms, spark student interest in the subject, and increase public
awareness about geography. The Bee is designed for students in grades 4-8.
The Wildwood Geography Bee,
which has been coordinated by Karen Lowe and Elaine Donoghue since 1996, started
on November 28th. Students in grades 4-6 were asked seven rounds of questions
on U.S. and world geography in their classrooms. Students with the highest
scores advanced to the run-off competition on December 13th in order to
determine the twelve finalists. The championship competition will be held in
the Wildwood Gym on January 11th at 9:30 am. The winner of that
competition will go on to the state bee in Worcester in April, 2010. Help
your student to prepare by incorporating geographic places into your
dinnertime conversation. Consider keeping a map handy for quick reference,
perhaps on the wall in the kitchen.
The Wildwood Library has a
wealth of geography study materials, books, atlases, practice questions, etc.
that students may borrow to help them prepare for the Bee.
The National Geographic
Society has a game, Geo Bee Challenge that posts five new questions every
day. It's an easy way to practice for the Bee.
