Around the World in Eighty Days

We are starting a new book, Around the World in Eighty Days, this week. My son received this book for Christmas and hasn't opened it so I thought we would do it as a read aloud. I would like to use it as a geography unit, but this will require great self control - something we don't possess when it comes to books. I've read all the wonderful Charlotte Mason philosophy about short readings and agree in principle, but during a first reading I find it difficult to break the flow of action. My children agree.

This being said, we are going to attempt to break the book into segments and to plot the movement of Phileas Fogg and Passepartout on their journey. Today is ballet day, so we will be going into the city and I will be able to get the National Geographic Map laminated (I hope). Some of those cool map pins would be a nice touch. A travel journal complete with pictures could organize and store all the images and information. I thought we would do this on the computer since handwriting is not one of our strong areas, yet both children are verbose. We already own a Children's Atlas that has some good information and pictures about the countries, which can be supplemented with the internet and the library.

First stop, London, England! I'm excited about this one!!