WONDER: Angkor Wat, Cambodia

FORMAT: Digital, printable project. 64 pages. PDF

AGE: Flexible, mixed-age family-based learning (best suited for ages 7-18 years)

SUBJECTS COVERED: Geography • History • Research • English • Art • Communication • Life Skills

TIMESCALE: Flexible • Enjoy over a week or a month

INCLUDES: Mission cards • Fact files • Research resources • Creative challenges • Reflection • Bonus printables

A flexible, immersive learning adventure designed to spark curiosity, creativity, independence and a deeper love of learning.

What if learning could feel less like getting through a curriculum and more like setting off on an adventure?

Imagine giving your children a destination to discover, a mystery to uncover, a series of missions to complete, and a whole new world waiting to be explored.

A DIFFERENT WAY OF LEARNING

Deep in the jungles of Cambodia, extraordinary temples rise from the landscape, enormous trees wind their roots around forgotten stones, carved walls reveal stories from another time, and amongst the ruins are mysteries that have fascinated historians and archaeologists for generations.

This is Angkor Wat.

Your children won't simply be asked to read about it, they are going to become part of the story.

They will research.

They will question.

They will make decisions.

They will create.

They will communicate.

They will become immersed.

And, perhaps most importantly, they will wonder.

DEEPER LEARNING

I originally created the Angkor Wat project for my own children and teens because I wanted something that would take us beyond simply reading facts and answering questions. I wanted learning that would make them curious enough to ask their own questions, encourage them to become independent learners and allow different ages to learn alongside one another. I wanted to give us a reason to slow down and become completely absorbed in one extraordinary place. And what began as an idea for a short project soon became something much bigger. Our own family ended up spending a whole week exploring Angkor Wat, and that experience became the foundation for the Wonders of the World series.

FOUR WAYS TO EXPERIENCE A WONDER

Every Wonders of the World project invites children to approach a Wonder from four different perspectives.

EXPLORE

Begin the journey.

Imagine you're preparing for an adventure to Cambodia.

Research the destination, make plans, weigh up your choices and discover what it might really take to turn your imagined journey into reality.

Along the way, you'll uncover your first glimpses of Angkor Wat and the world that surrounds it.

IMMERSE

Step deeper into the Wonder.

Now it's time to take what you've discovered and bring your adventure to life.

Through a real-world challenge, you'll need to gather your ideas and persuade others that your journey is worth taking.

IMAGINE

Become part of the story.

What if you could see Angkor Wat through the eyes of someone who had travelled there?

Step into the world of exploration and travel through imaginative writing experiences that invite you to look closer, notice more and tell the story in your own words.

CREATE

Respond to the Wonder.

Having explored Angkor Wat in so many different ways, it's time to create your own response.

Capture the atmosphere and beauty of the temples through a piece of artwork.

WHAT WILL YOUR CHILD DISCOVER?

Along the way, your children will encounter opportunities to explore:

Geography and place

Where is Cambodia? What is it like? How can they get there?

History and civilisation

Who built these remarkable temples? What can the ruins tell us about the people who lived here?

Research and investigation

How do we find reliable information? How do we decide which facts are important?

Communication

How can we share an idea clearly? How can we persuade an audience?

Creativity and imagination

How can we respond to a place through words, images and ideas?

Real-world skills

How do we plan, organise, budget, make decisions and work independently?

LEARNING THAT GROWS WITH YOUR CHILD

One of the things I love about this project is that children don't need to be doing the same thing in the same way. A younger child might draw posters by hand, older ones may choose to use technology; younger children might focus on researching just a few facts, whilst older teens might go off on a tangent or go deeper with their research; Siblings can explore the same Wonder together while working at completely different levels. They have the same starting point, but the outcomes may be very different. This project gives room for independence, collaboration, creativity and curiosity.

YOU DON'T HAVE TO PLAN THE WHOLE ADVENTURE

Perhaps you are looking for a new learning resource or curriculum, but aren’t sure what to study, or you worry about keeping everyone engaged and don’t want to spend ages preparing resources.

This project has been created to take away any worries or stresses you might have. It is here to give you a starting point.

The framework has been created.

The missions have been made.

The research resources have been written.

The creative opportunities are waiting.

You simply open the door and invite your children in.

Then see where their curiosity takes them.

This pack includes everything you need to begin exploring the Wonder, including:

Explorer Mission Cards

• Invitations into each stage of the adventure, designed to give children a sense of purpose and make the learning feel immersive.

Country and Wonder Fact Files

• Accessible background information to help provide context and support your children's own research.

Research and planning resources

• Designed to encourage children to investigate, organise information and develop their own ideas.

Real-world learning experiences

• Opportunities to plan, make decisions, communicate ideas and think practically.

Creative writing

• A choice of writing pathways that allow children to step into the world of Angkor Wat and bring their discoveries to life.

Creative art experience

• An opportunity to respond to the beauty and atmosphere of Angkor Wat through their own artwork.

Reflection and skills resources

• Helping children recognise not only what they have learned, but the capabilities they have developed along the way.

Bonus Explorer Printables

• A few extra touches to help bring the expedition to life.

IGNITE A SPARK

Although I originally imagined this as a short project, our own family quickly discovered that Angkor Wat deserved more time. You might choose to spend a whole week exploring, or might decide to have a dedicated Wonders of the World Day and choose one part at a time, allowing the project to unfold over the course of a month. There is no race to the finish. If something triggers a question, follow it; if your children become fascinated by something unexpected, explore it; if they want to take an idea further, let them. This project is so much more than developing academic skills. By allowing your children to follow rabbit- trails of learning, you are doing something amazing . . . you are enabling them to not only develop valuable life-skills . . . you are also igniting a love of learning that will last a lifetime.

WELCOME TO WONDERS OF THE WORLD

Angkor Wat is only the beginning.

Each project in the Wonders of the World series will take your family somewhere extraordinary.

A remarkable place.

An incredible animal.

An extraordinary plant.

A natural phenomenon.

Each project will help you to ask to questions, dive deeper and look at the world with awe and wonder.

Each time, the invitation will be the same . . . not simply to learn the facts, but to experience the Wonder.

YOUR FIRST EXPEDITION AWAITS

So pack your curiosity.

Open your explorer's notebook.

And prepare to journey deep into Cambodia.

There are temples waiting to be discovered.

Stories waiting to be uncovered.

Mysteries waiting to be solved.

And a whole world waiting beyond your front door.

DOWNLOAD YOUR ADVENTURE TODAY

WONDERS OF THE WORLD

Explore. Immerse. Create. Imagine.

Don't just learn about the Wonder.

Experience it.