Mini Minds Hub · Free printable
Wellbeing Word Passport: Free Printable Worksheet for Year 5
- ForYear 5
- StageKey Stage 2
- CostFree
- FormatPrintable PDF
Wellbeing Word Passport is a free printable geography worksheet for Year 5 (ages 9 to 10). Children find each country in an atlas or on a globe, stamp a word from that place, then invent a wellbeing word of their own. It is screen free, and page 2 gives the grown up notes, help ideas, a stretch task and the answers.
It comes from the Mini Minds Hub, the free library of printables from Jaques of London, the British games and toy company that has been making games for families since 1795. Print both pages, give page 1 to the child and keep page 2 for yourself. Have an atlas or globe and a pencil ready. Black and white printing works well.
What is on the sheet
Children work through a table with four columns: the word and its meaning, a clue, the country and the continent. They use the clues and an atlas or globe to place each word on the map. Then they draw a passport stamp for their favourite word. At the end they invent a new word for a good feeling, explain it and draw the feeling in a box.
- Word and meaning
- Clue
- Country
- Continent
- Draw a passport stamp for your favourite word
- Draw the feeling for your own new word
Getting ready to use the passport
Gather the tools
Put an atlas or a globe on the table before you start. If you have both, a globe shows where places sit on Earth and an atlas gives more detail.
Choose a calm spot
Pick a table with room for the sheet and the atlas side by side. Pencils and a rubber are enough. Coloured pencils are optional for the stamp and the drawing.
Read the sheet together
Look at the four table headings first. Ask your child what they think each one asks for. This makes the task clear before they begin.
Plan the sharing
Decide who will hear the invented words at the end. It could be a parent, a sibling or the whole class. Knowing there is an audience makes children think harder about their word.
Why look at wellbeing words from around the world?
Every language has its own words, and some of them name a feeling that English needs a whole phrase to describe. Looking at these words shows children that people in different places notice and value different things. It also gives them new ways to talk about feeling calm, cosy, content or connected to others.
Geography is about people and places as well as maps. Linking a word to a country and a continent gives each place a human face. Children practise using an atlas, and they also think about how culture and language belong to real places. Inventing their own word then asks them to explain a feeling clearly.
Quick facts about maps and words
- An atlas is a book of maps. Many atlases have an index at the back that lists place names and helps you find them.
- A globe is a round model of the Earth. It shows the shape of lands and seas without the stretching that flat maps need.
- People around the world speak thousands of different languages.
- A word in one language cannot always be swapped for a single word in another. Sometimes it takes a whole sentence to explain it.
- A continent is one of the very large areas of land on Earth. Countries are smaller places with their own borders.
Skills and curriculum link
- Using an atlas
- Naming countries
- Naming continents
- Using clues to reason
- Inventing a word
- Explaining ideas in writing
Helpful ideas for the grown up
- Use the atlas indexShow your child how to look up a place name in the index. It gives a page and a grid reference, which saves a lot of searching.
- Compare globe and atlasA globe and a flat map show the same places in different ways. Let children try both and say which they find easier.
- Countries and continentsA country is a place with its own borders. A continent is a much larger area of land. Ask your child to find the country first, then see which continent it sits in.
- Words and feelingsFeelings are the same for everyone, but the words for them differ. Ask your child to describe a feeling without using the usual word for it.
Key words
- AtlasA book of maps.
- GlobeA round model of the Earth.
- CountryA place with its own name, borders and government.
- ContinentOne of the very large areas of land on Earth.
- PassportA travel document. On this sheet it is a page for collecting words from different places.
- WellbeingFeeling well, comfortable and happy in your body and mind.
How to use it
- Print both pages. Page 1 is for the child. Keep page 2, which has the notes and answers.
- Give the child an atlas or globe. Read the table headings together so they know what each column asks for.
- For each row, read the clue aloud, find the country on the map and check it before writing. Then add the continent.
- Draw a passport stamp for the favourite word, then invent a new word and draw the feeling it describes. Share the new words aloud.
- Check with the notes and answers on page 2. Ask, "How did you find that place?" Come back another day to repeat it.
Help, stretch and game ideas
If it feels too hard
Let children work in pairs and match the country bank to the clues first. Then find each place together on a globe, one at a time. Say the country name aloud as you point to it. Do the table before the drawing boxes.
To stretch confident children
Find one more wellbeing word from another country. Locate that country on a map and add it to the passport with its meaning and continent. Then compare it with your own invented word. How are they alike and how do they differ?
Make it a game
Children act out their new word without speaking. The class guesses the feeling, then hears the invented word and its meaning. The actor chooses the next player. Keep the acting kind and calm, and praise good guesses as well as good acting.
Mistakes to watch for
Watch forA child guesses a country from how the word sounds instead of using the clue.
Try thisRead the clue again slowly and underline the key words. Then check the guess on the map before writing it in.
Watch forA child writes a continent in the country column, or the other way round.
Try thisRemind them that a country is a smaller place and a continent is a very large area of land. Ask them to point to both on the globe.
Watch forThe invented word has no clear meaning, or just copies one of the words on the sheet.
Try thisAsk, "What does it feel like? When would you use it?" Let them say the feeling aloud first, then build a word from sounds or parts that suit it.
Talk about it
- Which word on the sheet would you most like to use in English, and why?
- How did you decide where to look on the map first?
- Is there a feeling you have that English has no good word for?
- Why might a place have a special word for a certain feeling?
- What does your invented word sound like, and does the sound match the feeling?
- If you gave your word to a friend, how would you explain it?
Take it off the page
Feeling word collection
Ask family and friends for a word from another language that means something good. Write each one on a card with its meaning and the country it comes from.
Map stamps
Draw a simple world map on paper. Add a small stamp or sticker where each word comes from, then colour the continents.
Feelings charades
Take turns acting out feelings without speaking. The others guess the feeling, then the group invents a word for it together.
Who it is for
Parents
Sit with your child for the first row, then let them lead. Keep an atlas or globe on the table. Praise careful checking and good thinking, not only the right answer. Share the invented word at the end.
Teachers
Use it as a starter, a plenary, an early finisher task or a table activity. It needs no preparation beyond printing and having atlases or globes to hand. Page 2 gives support and stretch ideas for mixed groups.
Home educators
Print it as part of a wider geography plan. It pairs well with books about other countries and everyday talk about feelings. It is free to print again for brothers and sisters or for revision.
Where this fits in geography
Before this sheet, children build their knowledge of where places are. They learn to name the continents and some countries, and they begin to use a globe and a simple map. Wellbeing Word Passport gives them practice at using an atlas with a clear purpose.
After this sheet, children can look at places in more detail. They might compare regions, study the culture and daily life of one country, or use atlas skills such as the index and grid references. The habit of checking facts in an atlas is useful in all of these.
Questions parents and teachers ask
- What age is Wellbeing Word Passport for?
It is written for Year 5 (ages 9 to 10), in Key Stage 2. Younger children can do it with help, and older children can use the stretch idea to take it further.
- What will children practise?
Children practise using an atlas, naming countries and continents, and thinking about how places and cultures have their own words for feeling good. They also invent and explain a new word of their own.
- What do I need to use it?
You need the printed pages, a pencil, and an atlas or a globe. Children use the atlas or globe to check each country before they write. Coloured pencils are optional for the drawing boxes.
- What if it feels too hard?
Let children work in pairs. They match the country bank to the clues first, then find each place on a globe together. Do one row at a time, and say each country name aloud as you find it.
- Is it free?
Yes. It is free to print for home and classroom use. You can print it again for brothers, sisters or revision a few weeks later.
- Can teachers use it in class?
Yes. Teachers can use it as a starter, plenary, early finisher task, homework or table activity. It needs no preparation beyond printing and having atlases or globes available.
- Do I need to print in colour?
No. It prints well in black and white on plain A4 paper. Children can add colour to the passport stamp and the feeling drawing if they want to.
Preview the full PDF
Made by Jaques of London, making games for families since 1795. A printable supports classroom learning and does not replace a teacher.