Using the SQ3R study method of surveying, questioning, reading, reciting, and reviewing, sixth grade students explored the geography of regions around the world. This five-step process is designed to encourage understanding of a text by engaging the reader throughout the research process. 

Under the guidance of history teacher Dana Karin, the students studied Africa, Latin America, Monsoon Asia, and Southwest and Central Asia. They then designed a collaborative poster to present to Director of Global Education Dr. Gilles Chosson and Head of the Middle School Dr. Josh Deitch. 

“We had to learn about the climate, population, largest industries, countries, food, vegetation, economics, and political boundaries of our regions,” said Tim Drbul ’28, who worked with his peers on researching Central and South Asia. 

The students divided the categories among themselves and read about them independently from their textbooks before summarizing their understanding and sharing it with the group. “One interesting thing that I learned while reading about Southwest and Central Asia was that it has the largest oil deposit in the world,” Tim said. 

Jiya Dohil ’28 collaborated with her group on studying Africa. “Because Africa is pretty large, I wanted to learn about the differences from country to country. For example, the types of food they have access to, and how they’re able to access the food is very different from one place to another. The climates can also be quite different since some countries are above the equator and some are below,” she said. 

Using the information they learned, the students each designed a different section of their poster boards in preparation for their presentations. “I was impressed by the work of these young global scholars. They successfully demonstrated that they performed a thoughtful research process,” said Director of Global Education Dr. Gilles Chosson. “They identified resources that worked best for them, gathered reliable data, and turned it into a creative and comprehensive poster. They had fun with the project, and they were so proud to present their work!”