Geography · Year 3

Active learning ideas

Tourism and Economy

Active learning helps Year 3 students grasp the real-world impact of tourism on the Mediterranean economy. Through role play, collaboration, and visual analysis, students move beyond abstract ideas to see how tourism shapes lives, jobs, and landscapes in concrete ways.

• National Curriculum Attainment Targets
• KS2: Geography - Human Geography
• KS2: Geography - Place Knowledge

• 25–40 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 3 activities

Activity 01

• Role Play
• 40 min · Small Groups

Role Play: The Resort Meeting

A new hotel wants to build on a beach where turtles lay their eggs. Students take roles: the Hotel Manager (jobs and money), the Environmentalist (save the turtles), and the Local Shopkeeper (more customers). They must try to find a 'middle ground' solution.

Why is the Mediterranean a popular destination for tourists?

Facilitation Tip

During the Resort Meeting role play, assign clear roles (hotelier, fisher, tour guide) and provide props like toy money or tourist brochures to ground the discussion in real scenarios.

What to look for

On a postcard-sized card, ask students to draw one 'pull factor' for Mediterranean tourism on one side. On the other side, they should write two sentences explaining how this factor helps the local economy and one sentence about a potential environmental concern.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Social Awareness
• Self-Awareness

Activity 02

• Inquiry Circle
• 30 min · Pairs

Inquiry Circle: The Tourist Pound

Give students a 'budget' of 100 tokens. They must 'spend' them on a Mediterranean holiday (hotel, food, tours, souvenirs). They then map out where that money goes, does it stay in the local village or go to a big international airline? This introduces the concept of economic impact.

How does tourism help or hurt the local environment?

Facilitation Tip

While completing The Tourist Pound investigation, circulate and ask guiding questions like 'Who benefits when tourists spend money here?' to push students toward economic reasoning.

What to look for

Pose the question: 'Imagine you are a local shop owner in a Mediterranean village. How does tourism help your business? Now, imagine you are a park ranger protecting a local beach. What problems might too many tourists cause?' Facilitate a class discussion comparing these perspectives.

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Self-Management
• Self-Awareness

Activity 03

• Gallery Walk
• 25 min · Whole Class

Gallery Walk: Pull Factors

Display photos of different Mediterranean attractions (a beach, an ancient temple, a water park, a local market). Students walk around and use 'dot voting' to show which would 'pull' them to visit. They then discuss which attractions bring the most money and which cause the most 'wear and tear'.

What would happen to the economy if the climate became too hot for visitors?

Facilitation Tip

For the Gallery Walk: Pull Factors, have students rotate in small groups, record one example on a sticky note, and post it under the correct category (sun, sea, history, etc.) to build a shared visual reference.

What to look for

Provide students with a short list of Mediterranean attractions (e.g., ancient ruins, sandy beaches, ski resorts, rainforests). Ask them to circle the features that are 'pull factors' for tourism and underline those that might cause environmental problems. Review answers as a class.

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Create
• Relationship Skills
• Social Awareness

A few notes on teaching this unit

Start with concrete examples students can relate to, like a favorite holiday spot or family trip, before introducing broader economic concepts. Avoid overcomplicating the idea of 'the economy'—focus on how money moves between tourists, businesses, and locals. Research shows that role-play and tangible materials (e.g., fake currency, maps) help young learners grasp abstract systems like tourism economies more effectively.

Students will explain pull factors for Mediterranean tourism, evaluate its economic benefits and costs, and use evidence to discuss the industry’s impact on local communities. Success looks like thoughtful participation in discussions, accurate identification of factors, and balanced reasoning about tourism’s effects.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During the Gallery Walk: Pull Factors, listen for students who only identify beaches. Redirect them to the history and cultural images in the gallery, asking, 'What do these ruins tell us about why people visit beyond the beach?'

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Methods used in this brief

• Role Play
• Inquiry Circle
• Gallery Walk