Around the World

This one is inspired by the song "Children All Over the World" (p. 16), which was one of my favorite Primary songs as a kid.

I like this one because it works well for both Junior and Senior (with a few adjustments for Senior!).

Supplies needed:

• large map of the world
• small slips of paper with 8-10 ways to say "thank you" in different languages
• be sure to include the six languages specifically mentioned in "Children All Over the World" (p. 16): "Gracias", "Malo", "Wir danken dir", "Tak", "Merci", "Kansha shimasu"
• Here are the ones I've used:
• Gracias (Spanish)
• Malo (Tongan)
• Wir danken dir (German)--they usually just say "Danke", so I put that on the slip, too.
• Tak (Danish)
• Merci (French)
• Kansha shimasu (Japanese)
• Dank U (Dutch)
• Asante (Swahili)
• Obrigado (Portuguese)
• Spasiba (Russian)
• list of 8-10 songs you want to sing (one for each language)
• I also add in "Children All Over the World" (p. 16) at the end (for Senior at least)
• for Senior Primary: clues to help them figure out which country each language is spoken in.  Obviously most languages are spoken in multiple countries, so take your pick! Here are the ones I've used in the past:
• Gracias (Spanish) = PERU
• -Nearly half of this country is covered by the Amazon jungle
• -It has a range of huge mountains called the Andes running through it
• -Three famous cities: Cusco, Machu Picchu, and Lima
• Malo (Tongan) = TONGA
• -Consists of 170 islands, 48 are inhabited
• -guns, gambling, and going shirtless are all illegal
• -name comes from ‘Tongahahake’, means ‘the wind that blows from the SE’
• Wir danken dir (German) = GERMANY
• -Shares a border with nine countries 
• -From 1961 to 1989 this country was divided in half by a wall
• -Home to the Black Forest, Bach, Brahms, and Beethoven
• Tak (Danish) = DENMARK
• -there is not a single mountain in this country, highest hill is 560 feet
• -they invented Legos
• -home to the Vikings, Hans Christian Anderson, and Copenhagen
• Merci (French) = FRANCE
• -When the Romans occupied this country, they named it Gaul
• -largest country in Western Europe
• -famous for guillotines, Bonaparte, and the Eiffel Tower
• Kansha shimasu (Japanese) = JAPAN
• -Home to more than 200 volcanoes
• -rice is eaten at almost every meal, including breakfast
• -The national sport is sumo wrestling
• Dank U (Dutch) = HOLLAND/THE NETHERLANDS
• -this country has twice as many bikes as cars
• -home to the tallest people in the world
• -they grow and sell the most tulips in the world
• Asante (Swahili) = KENYA
• -the equator runs through this country
• -home to elephants, lions, zebras & giraffes
• -capital is Nairobi 
• I also sang them the "Asante sana, squashed banana" song from Lion King when they got stuck on this one. Not sure how much it helped!
• Obrigado (Portuguese) = PORTUGAL
• -In Roman times it was known as Luisitania
• -90% of the population is Roman Catholic
• -world’s largest producer of cork
• Spasiba (Russian) = RUSSIA
• -national obsession with chess
• -first to send a person into space
• -largest country in the world
• tape/pins for the map and language slips

Set up:

1. Hang up your map
2. Have the language slips on a table or in a bag for the kids to pick from
• I reinforced my slips by taping them to construction paper. If you're planning on doing this activity multiple times over the years (and using the same languages), this might be a good idea.
3. Have your list of clues ready for Senior Primary
4. Have tape/pins ready to put the languages on the correct place on your map

Game play:

1. Have a child come up and pick a language slip.
• JUNIOR: Pronounce the word and have the Primary repeat it.
• tell them what language it is
• tell them the countr(ies) where it's spoken and a fact or two about the countr(ies).
• put the language slip in the right place on the map and sing the corresponding song
• SENIOR: Pronounce the word and have the Primary repeat it.
• DON'T tell them what language it is--instead, read them the clues.
• If the clues aren't enough, tell them the language. If that's not enough, start giving them geographical clues ("It's in Asia, near China", etc.)
• put the language slip in the right place on the map and sing the corresponding song
2. Try to leave yourself 5 minutes at the end to teach the Primary "Children All Over the World" (p. 16). I don't usually try with Junior, but I always do with Senior!