Tierra Del Fuego by Peter Lourie

Tierra Del Fuego by Peter Lourie is a non fiction account of Peter's journey to the Tierra Del Fuego discovered by Ferdinand Magellan. The book is a story of Peter's personal account of his time visiting the areas that surround Tierra Del Fuego and the history behind the land. Peter incorporates what he sees and witnessed with the events that were recorded in history or witnessed by discoverers before his time.The book's set up is easy to follow and is divided into chapters that focus on a different (or part of) a country. Most photographs in the book are those he has personally photographed on his trip and other pictures are incorporated as references to the historical segments of the text. Those pictures include maps, pictures of the boats that sailed the seas, and pictures of the indigenous people from the area. This non-fictional story is a great reference for students to use for research, of a personal experience in a land discovered long, long ago. It provides a wonderful approach to learning and studying a topic of interest.

Lourie, Peter. Tierra Del Fuego: A Journey to the End of the Earth. Honesdale, PA: Boyds Mills Press, 2002. Print.

Teaching Suggestions for Tierra del Fuego

This book can be used as a perfect research tool for whole class or individual use. For whole class it can provide scaffolding for a myriad of discovery or exploration concepts and can be applied in any third grade class or higher.

• Before reading, introduce the author as an explorer who is exploring a land once discovered by a famous or well known explorer by the name of Ferdinand Magellan. Introduce the format of the story and have students focus and discuss the chapter topics. Discuss important vocabulary words that will appear in the text: brooding, ominouus, myth, circumnavigation, squalls, gales,banshee, descendants, derelict, missionary. Other terminology will have in text definitions. 
• During reading, emphasize proper note taking skills for research purposes. Provide students with a graphic organizer in which they can (if desired) organize their notes in. Pause after every labeled section to discuss main idea and details that can be used in research assignment. 
• After reading, students will have the choice to research further any part of the Tierra Del Fuego. Students can choose a certain focus; whether it be on the people of Tierra Del Fuego, the locations, the animals or the first discovery. 

Supplemental Websites for Tierra del Fuego

• Tierra Del Fuego National Park  Provides information on the location and geographical components of the area.
• Patagonia Culture provides information on the people of Tierra Del Fuego can be used for teacher's reference and/or for student research.