Shreveport Elementary School Training The Cartographers Of Tomorrow

Instead of just listening to a lecture on their unit on maps and measurements, kindergartners and first-graders at Arthur Circle Elementary have been actually taking measurements and making maps.

The Shreveport Times observed a group involved in mapping the school grounds:

They carefully lined up their rulers on the ground between two oak trees until they determined the distance was about 32 yards. Then, they shrieked and cheered.

Seven-year-old Molly Washington explained the excitement: "We get to learn about stuff while we do it."

The activity is funded through a grant from the Alliance for Education. The kids have already made maps showing playground equipment, trees and buildings on and off campus. Next, they will use software purchased with the grant money to add directions on how to get from one location to another to their maps.

No need to worry that a bunch of school-aged map-makers will flood the job market though. Molly told the Times that it will be awhile before the kids use their new cartographic skills for real: "probably when we're grown-ups" she said.