AGES:  Beginning readers, older readers

MATERIALS:  World map or map of the United States, map tacks or thumbtacks with colored heads, felt-tip pen

Ask the librarian to recommend an age-appropriate reading itinerary.  The list of recommendations may take readers to the Scottish Highlands (Lassie Come Home), Australia (Storm Boy), and the South Seas (Call It Courage) as they zigzag around the globe.  Or children may tour the United States, starting on the East Coast (A Tree Grows in Brooklyn) and working their way west (The Long Journey).

Hang a world map or a map of the United States on the wall.  After finishing a book, the child pinpoints the location (the main setting) on the map with a map tack or thumbtack, and draws a line from the pin out to the margin, where the child writes in the title and author of the book.

Keep the map hanging as long as your children are interested in logging their book travels.  They can travel together by reading the same books, or each reader can venture on his or her own.

Your children can send postcards requesting more information about their international destinations to the embassies (in Washington, D.C.) of the countries they're reading about.  For information about various cities and towns in the United States, they can write to the local Chamber of Commerce.  Most organizations are happy to send free materials.