As the 21st century progresses, spatial literacy is being recognized as an important part of K-12 education. Spatial thinking assists students in everyday tasks such as following directions and helps them develop complex problem-solving skills. Regardless of the field a student decides to enter into, he or she will benefit from learning spatial literacy in elementary, middle and high school.
Learning spatial literacy helps students succeed in many areas
Students who master this literacy are likely to be more adept at classes, jobs and even athletic activities that require spatial awareness to answer questions, complete tasks or form strategies. Starting from an early age, teachers can promote spatial literacy by including these concepts in their curriculum.
Teaching spatial literacy: Elementary school
While many individuals use GPS software to navigate from place to place, the ability to read a map remains an important skill. Teachers can use a lesson on maps to teach younger students about spatial literacy.
Colors, scale and terrain: Teaching spatial thinking with maps
Reading and creating maps lets students practice measuring distances and teaches them how to depict a real-world location on a spatial grid. To do this, teachers can:
Teach students about maps by having them examine different types of maps. This exploration should include how colors, keys, spacing and scale are used to represent structures, roads and terrain.
Introduce a unit on making maps in the classroom. Students will start by mapping out a familiar room, making decisions about how to best represent doorways, furniture and other elements in the space.
Ask students to put this skill to use on a larger scale by having them map out a classroom, grade block or even an entire school.
Students must determine how to use color, shapes or other visual elements to create a map that accurately represents a location.
Through this process, students learn different ways of looking at the physical spaces they inhabit and practice how to represent them visually.
Strategies for teaching spatial literacy in middle and high school
Students at higher levels should be able to apply spatial literacy skills in a variety of capacities. While students might perceive geographic learning as a study of history, learning how the earth was formed as well as how natural disasters like earthquakes and tsunamis happen benefits their understanding of the contemporary world.
Exploring the Grand Canyon: Applying spatial thinking to natural science
Understanding geological concepts requires some understanding of how actions that happen in one space can impact another space, but it also requires learning that many geographic locations are malleable. Many courses about natural science include a section on geology. Interactive lessons can help students truly understand how geography changes over time.
Start with a lesson on how mountains are formed through the movement of plates and rock formations occur in layers. Give students physical objects they can manipulate to cement their understanding.
Provide students with a variety of tactile examples of geological concepts, for instance pushing together two pieces of paper to demonstrate how mountains form or using different colors of sand to demonstrate how layers are made.
Take a field trip to, or watch a movie about, the Grand Canyon or another geographically distinctive location. During the trip or film, ask students to note distinct geological features and how they were formed.
Ask them to consider how future geological events could change that location, drawing pictures or making figures to illustrate this.
Teachers can include spatial literacy in lesson plans for many subjects
While spatial literacy is one more skill for teachers to attempt to work into their already-full curriculum, this particular ability can be taught in conjunction with subjects including math, social studies and art. Teachers who include spatial literacy in their lessons will help promote student success in many areas.
Caitrin Blake has a B.A. in English and Sociology from the University of Vermont and a master’s degree in English literature from the University of Colorado Denver. She teaches composition at Arapahoe Community College.