Tour de France 2009, an educational opportunity not to miss

July 3, 7:36 PMEarly Childhood Educational Activities ExaminerStarr Weems de Graffenried

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(AP Photo/Bas Czerwinski)

 Each summer, millions of cycling enthusiasts turn their eyes towards France. For almost a month, the world watches as cyclists from around the world travel across 3500 miles of French countryside.

The Tour de France is more than a sporting event. It is an educational opportunity. Parents, educators and homeschoolers can use the Tour de France to teach math, history, geography, language and culture. Your family can track the cyclists on Google Earth, read about the cities on the Tour de France's tourist guide, calculate mileage, create a virtual trip, learn some French vocabulary, study the countries that some of the cyclists come from or just use the Tour as inspiration to begin a family fitness program.

The creator of Homeschool Curriculum For Life designed an entire unit on the Tour de France that educators can download for free. Her site is loaded with useful information and you can sign up for her free E-zine here.

The Tour de France only comes once each year. Let it help inspire your family to become lifetime learners.

For more information:

Learn simple French color words

Learn simple French number words

Tour de France Study Unit

Tour de France official site in English