Product Tips

Interactive Globes

Volume 8 / Issue 2 Winter 2008

Navigate the world in a fun and informative way with interactive globes. Three good choices include GeoSafari Talking Globe, Jr., and GeoSafari Talking Globe by Educational Insights, Inc., and SmartGlobe Deluxe Edition by Oregon Scientific.

GeoSafari Talking Globe, Jr., for ages six to ten, explores continents; countries; the United States in depth; oceans, rivers, and mountain ranges; and a combination of the above in both lesson and quiz format. Explore mode is a teaching unit with a five-question quiz at the end; game mode is a quiz game for one, two, or three players with two levels of difficulty: level one corresponds directly to the explore-mode lesson, and level two asks additional questions that are not directly answered in explore mode but can be inferred from the lesson or located on the globe.

The globe fits into an electronic base that contains the speaker and the on/off, repeat, help, game set-up, and answer buttons. Continents are color-coded for easy identification. The accompanying booklet is comprehensive and reproducible; it contains tips for setting up a geography learning center, record charts for progress; games, puzzles, and activities, and a picture guide of animals from around the world. The help feature on the globe uses the color-coding and the animal guides to steer children towards correct identification of continents, countries, and capital cities. Locations on the extreme Southern Hemisphere, however, are impossible to find without lifting and tilting the whole unit, and the audio can be difficult to understand on some questions.

GeoSafari Talking Globe, Jr. is appropriate for all first through fourth graders as an introduction to world and local geography.

GeoSafari Talking Globe is similar to the Talking Globe, Jr. though much more topographically detailed. It does not use the color-coding or the animal picture references, and it does not include an explore mode. One to four players may participate in the game mode, each selecting his or her own response time of 20, 40, 60, or 120 seconds, depending on the age and level of individual players. Alternating turns, each player answers ten questions; the repeat and help functions guide responses, and the audio provides encouragement throughout. However, the help suggestions often automatically eliminate the wrong answers without requiring the player to figure out or find the correct answer on the globe, and the audio is sometimes difficult to understand.

Another drawback is that not all of the answers can be found on the globe. For example, one of the questions lists several countries where the Tiber River might be located, but the river is not on the globe at all. Unless players know the Tiber is in Italy, they will have to guess at the answer.

As with the Talking Globe, Jr., the instruction booklet for Talking Globe is clear and easy to understand. It provides a clear explanation of the globe’s features, such as the analemma and the ecliptic line, and a glossary of geographic terms. Also included are notes on the musical selections from different countries used on some of the audio answers. Instruction booklets for both Talking Globe and Talking Globe, Jr. are available online at educationalinsights.com/downloads/index.html.

GeoSafari Talking Globe is appropriate for gifted elementary children and older children of all ability levels.

SmartGlobe Deluxe Edition is an excellent choice for gifted children of all ages. Designed for ages five to adult, players use the electronic SmartPen to activate the touch-sensitive control pad and set up search games for up to four players and three levels of difficulty. Participants search for continents, countries, capitals, cities, local landmarks, or a combination, touching the location on the globe with the SmartPen for audio confirmation of correct responses. Search games can also be set up in the same categories using the Spanish language as a medium.

Other activities provide general knowledge about specific countries. By touching the SmartPen to a topic on the control pad and then touching it to a country on the globe, the SmartGlobe provides facts about the country’s leader, population, weather, history, geography, currency, time, and area, for example. The Compare function allows users to compare countries’ populations, areas, currencies, and times and calculates distance and flying time between locations. The Knowledge category details facts about the earth and current world news. The product includes a software CD for registering SmartGlobe and a cable for connecting the SmartPen to PC Internet service for downloading weekly updated information.

SmartGlobe rotates horizontally and tilts vertically for easy access to either pole, and the base contains a slide-out map of the United States for larger, more detailed access. The kit also includes an AC adapter for the base unit. While the SmartPen occasionally registers a correct answer as incorrect on some of the smaller points on the globe, overall, SmartGlobe is a fun product and an excellent learning tool. It is the recipient of Dr. Toy’s Best Ten Educational toys of 2005 and has been designated a Toy of the Year for 2007 by Toy Industry Association, Inc.

—Sarah Boone, MA , MFA

Sarah Boone has a master’s degree in teaching and is certified in gifted education. She also holds an MFA in creative writing.