New York,
NY (May
9,
2003) --
Kids across the country have once again demonstrated their love for geography in Junior Scholastic® Magazine's annual “Can You Find the Mapman?” contest. The grand-prize winner is Danielle Fry of Fairfield Middle School in Fairfield, Iowa, who found the Mapman in his mystery destination of Santa Catarina, Brazil, an island located along Brazil's southeast coast in the South Atlantic Ocean.
This year's contest drew more than 9,000 entries from middle school students in all 50 states. Grand-prize winner Danielle Fry has won a $500 U.S. Savings Bond, and a 2003 Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia®. Twenty-five runners-up from schools nationwide will also receive the 2003 Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia. The contest results are featured in the May 9th issue of Junior Scholastic, the leading social studies and current events magazine for middle school students.
Created by Scholastic's resident cartographer, Mapman Jim McMahon, the “Can You Find the Mapman?” contest tests kids' map-reading skills-from recognizing political boundaries and locating cities using latitude and longitude to understanding time zones and measuring distances with a scale of miles or kilometers-and challenges their creativity.
Contest entrants were required to trace The Mapman's route to the mystery destination by answering eight questions that would baffle many adults. To qualify for the grand prize, kids had to answer all questions correctly, then draw a map of the area. The grand-prize winner and runners-up were selected based on their maps' cartographic accuracy and creativity, including design and color treatment.
The questions were (answers in parenthesis):
- I sailed on a sloop from Miami to historic San Salvador Island. In which direction did I sail? (Southeast)
- I battled rough seas as I headed for an island at 18°N, 66°W. This island is a commonwealth of which country? (United States)
- Next, I sailed along a series of Caribbean islands that stretch in an arc towards Venezuela. What is the geographic name of these islands? (Lesser Antilles or Archipelago)
- Turmoil forced me to flee the city of Caracas, which is the most northerly capital on which continent? (South America)
- Which two named lines of latitude mark the northern and southern limits of the tropics? (Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn)
- I sailed to Belém, the gateway to the Amazon. I then traveled westward about 1,300 kilometers. In what city did I arrive? (Manaus)
- Next, I caught a 3 1/2-hour flight to São Paulo. About how many people live there? (More than 5 million)
- I arrived at my final destination at 27°S, 48°W-a small island with many beautiful beaches. To which country does this island belong? (Brazil)
“Danielle's entry combined elements of Brazil's natural geography with its wildlife. Her entry's backdrop is Brazil's rainforest, where a macaw holds a map of the region in its mouth,” said the Mapman. “Danielle's work resonated with the artistic exuberance of a Henri Rousseau painting, right down to the diminutive portraits of mosquitoes.”
“We are very excited that Danielle is winner of this year's 'Can You Find the Mapman?' contest. Students at Fairfield Middle School have been competing in Junior Scholastic's Mapman contest since it began several years ago. Our school views geography as an important subject for students to master, and the contest is a great way to learn geography,” said Tom Fontana, social studies teacher at Fairfield Middle School.”
Junior Scholastic's geography content is consistently popular with teachers and students. Entire classes often submit entries to the “Can You Find the Mapman?” contest. Through “Ask the Mapman®,” his regular column in
Junior Scholastic, the Mapman has received thousands of letters from kids.
Runners-up are:
- Nicholas Arjona, Walker School, Kennesaw, GA
- Natali Alcalá, Doolen Middle School, Tucson, AZ
- Lauryn Ando, St. Francis School, Honolulu, HI
- Amanda Apholz, Gulfview Middle School, Gulfview, FL
- Sveta Bornschlegl, Resurrection Lutheran School, Rochester, MN
- Caroline Griffith, Bemus Point School, Bemus Point, NY
- Becky Grinwald, Saylesville School, Rubicon, WI
- Emily Fleming, C-K Middle School, Ceredo, WV
- Shaina Herding, Watertown Middle School, Watertown, SD
- Alexis Johnson, LaSalle Language Academy, Chicago, IL
- Kevin Keller, Doolen Middle School, Tucson, AZ
- Shirley Liang, The Bay Academy/I.S. 98, Brooklyn, NY
- Marc Luong, Our Lady Help of Christians, Allentown, PA
- McKenzie Morton, Gulfview Middle School, Naples, FL
- Jeff Nelson, Watertown Middle School, Watertown, SD
- Tony Ordonez, Gulfview Middle School, Naples, FL
- Michele Paccagnini, Randolph Middle School, Randolph, NJ
- Joseph Perry, Sacred Heart School, Turlock, CA
- Michael Schmidt, Randolph Middle School, Randolph, NJ
- Aaron Pickrel, Watertown Middle School, Watertown, SD
- Allison Stephens, Aledo Junior High, Aledo, IL
- Chiu-Hung Tai, Gulfview Middle School, Naples, FL
- David Tao, Barnsley Elementary School, Rockville, MD
- Adar Weinreb, Randolph Middle School, Randolph, NJ
- Helen Wu, Randolph Middle School, Randolph, NJ
Scholastic is the world's largest publisher of educational magazines for grades pre-K through 12.
Junior Scholastic, a current-events magazine for grades 6 to 8, provides social-studies teachers with timely articles tying into the complete curriculum, including current events, global studies, geography, economics, American history, world history, and government. Each issue of
Junior Scholastic features rich editorial, full-color maps, political cartoons, graphs, and photographs that make social studies come alive, giving teachers a powerful tool for engaging kids in the study of the world beyond the borders of their own communities.
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