Map Your Child's Reading Journey Around the Globe (with free printable!)

About a year ago I came across a neat idea in The Read Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease. He suggested several ways to help children track the books they are reading, including posting a map that you can mark with stickers any time you read a book that is set in another country. I kept sharing this tip with friends and my Barefoot Books customers, but I hadn't actually done it at home. Maybe it was because until this year, so many of my 3 year old son's books were about animals. Until recently, our map would have been pretty sparsely marked.

Creating a Global Reading Map with Your Child

Halloween day was rainy here and my son was pretty hyped up about the holiday. I needed a project to keep both of us occupied and a little closer to calm. A Doctors without Borders mailing arrived that included a world map, and our project was born. We put the map up on the wall and started searching through my son's book collection to see which books that we'd read were set in another country. Each time we found such a book, I'd show him where the country was on the map. Then I'd write the name of the book and the country on a small sticky note and he'd attach it to the corresponding country.

However, as we read more books from around the world, I think the sticky notes are going to crowd the map too much. I plan for us to use this log that I created, and then just put dots on the map for each country where we've read a book.

One of the side benefits of doing this project is it helped me identify which parts of the world we have neglected so far. We've done pretty well with Europe and okay with Africa and Asia, but we really need some books set in Latin America.

Download your free printable Read Around the World log.

Travel the World with Barefoot Books

Do you need to diversify your book shelf? Here are just a few of my favorite Barefoot Books to help your child travel the world:

Elephant Dance: A Journey to India.

Listen along with Ravi to Grandfather's captivating stories about India, where the sun is like a ferocious tiger and monsoon rains cascade like waterfalls. Ages 3 - 8.

One City, Two Brothers: A Story from Jerusalem

This is a tale that has been told for many years by Jews, Muslims, and Christians alike. Listen to Solomon as he tells the tale of two brothers who learn the true meaning of peace and selflessness.
Ages 4 - 10.

Mama Panya's Pancakes: A Village Tale from Kenya

On market day, Mama Panya's son Adika invites everyone he sees to a pancake dinner at their home. How will Mama Panya ever feed them all?








What are your favorite books to help children travel around the world? Please share your suggestions in the comments!

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links to my Barefoot Books website at no additional charge to you.