Geography at key stages 1 and 2    (Year 2)

• Using maps, atlases and globes, ask the children to locate the UK and Mexico and to identify the main continents and oceans.
• Ask the children to trace a route to Mexico and locate Tocuaro (a village to the west of Mexico City).
• Ask the children how they might travel there and what sort of time would be needed for the journey.
• Ask the children to say or write down what they think Tocuaro would be like if they were to go there.

• Using the picture boards in the pack and a range of other collected pictures of Mexico discuss with the children what Tocuaro is like.
• Ask the children to draw and label pictures of Tocuaro to show its main physical and human features.
• Ask the children to write a short description of the area to describe what Tocuaro is like.
• Ask the children to list the physical and human features of Tocuaro that are similar to and different from those in their own area.

• Using the pictures and the poster in the pack discuss with the children what life might be like in Tocuaro.
• Ask the children to make up questions to ask Angelica, the youngest member of the Horta family, like: What is family life like for you? What sort of food do you eat? How much do things cost where you live? The children may then be asked to try to answer the questions they have posed. Alternatively, one child might be asked to act the role of Angelica and try to answer the questions.
• Using the pupil's book in the pack, ask the children to look up the words 'cooking' and 'tortilla' in the index and write about the food the family would eat.
• Using picture board number 7, ask the children to make two lists to identify newer and more traditional ways of cooking.
• Use pages 18-19 in the booklet Mexican Village to encourage children to talk about going to school in Tocuaro.
• Ask the children to write a description of life in Tocuaro, using headings such as houses, food, shopping and going to school. The use of a writing frame for this task might be helpful for some children.
• Ask the children to do the same for their own locality and then to decide which aspects of life might be the same for both places.
• Angelica's father is a mask maker. Using the template provided on picture board 6, ask the children to design a colourful mask for themselves drawing on the traditional Mexican and earlier Aztec designs.
• Ask the children to think about how life is changing and may change in the future in Tocuaro. A good example to stimulate discussion is picture board 8, which shows washing being done in the traditional way. Ask the children to think about how the method of washing may change now that the family is earning money, and whether the change will be for the better or for the worse.
• Ask the children to reflect on how their ideas about a Mexican village have changed and developed. Ask them to think about what other questions they might ask to find out more about life in the village or in Mexico in general.