David J. Smith is an American teacher, children's writer and educational consultant.

Background

Smith taught English, geography and social studies for over 25 years.he was born on April 24. He achieved national recognition for his method of teaching seventh graders to draw maps from memory. This approach is explained in his curriculum "Mapping the World by Heart." Since 1992, he has been working as a full-time educational consultant. He lectures on informational technologies, geography and global issues for teachers, parents, students and others through the US, Europe, Africa, Asia and Latin America. Smith was born in

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, but now lives in

Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

Recognition

Smith has been recognized by

NBC's Today Show ''Today'' (also called ''The Today Show'') is an American morning television show that airs weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on NBC. The program debuted on January 14, 1952. It was the first of its genre on American television ...

, the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' and the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

for the success of his curriculum. He has written articles for

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

Education Life section, "The International Educator" and "The World Paper."

Personal awards

In 1992, Smith won the US Department of Education's "A+ for Breaking the Mold" Award for his work.

Book awards

Smith's book ''If the World Were a Village: A Book About the World's People'', illustrated by

Shelagh Armstrong Shelagh Armstrong (born 1961) is a Canadian illustrator, and was the recipient of the 1985 Will Davies award for excellence in illustration.http://www.mint.ca/RoyalCanadianMintPublic/en-CA/Vancouver2010/Collect/Artists/default.htm - 12k Life an ...

, has won a number of awards. * Premio H.C.Andersen Award in 2003 for the Italian Edition. *

International Reading Association The International Literacy Association (ILA), formerly the International Reading Association (IRA), is an international global advocacy and member professional organization that was created in 1956 to improve reading instruction, facilitate dial ...

Children's Book Award 2003 * IRA and Children's Book Council Children's Choice Book for 2003 *

Teachers' Choice Book * National Parenting Publications Awards—Gold Award Winner 2003 *

Smithsonian Magazine ''Smithsonian'' is a magazine covering science, history, art, popular culture and innovation. The first issue was published in 1970. History The history of ''Smithsonian'' began when Edward K. Thompson, the retired editor of ''Life'' magazine ...

"Notable Book of the Year"

Books

* ''IF: A Mind-Bending New Way of Looking At Big Ideas and Numbers'', Kids Can Press; (September 2014), * '' If the World Were a Village - Second Edition: A Book about the World's People'', Kids Can Press; 2 edition (February 1, 2011), * ''This Child, Every Child: A Book about the World's Children'', Kids Can Press (February 1, 2011) * ''If America Were a Village: A Book about the People of the United States'', Kids Can Press, Ltd.; First edition (August 1, 2009), * '' If the World Were a Village: A Book about the World's People'', CitizenKid, by David J. Smith and Shelagh Armstrong (March 1, 2002), * ''David Smith's Mapping the World By Heart'', Fablevision Learning, Dedham, MA; (July 2010), ''David Smith's Mapping the World by Heart: An Innovative Approach to Learning Geography'' (textbook grade 5-12), Tom Snyder Productions (1996), ASIN: B0006QW3DU This version no longer in print

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, David J. Canadian children's writers Living people Writers from Boston Year of birth missing (living people)