The equator is an imaginary line drawn around the earth equally distant from both poles, dividing the earth into northern and southern hemispheres and constituting the parallel of latitude 0°. Although there are continents and some countries that are in both the eastern hemisphere and the western hemisphere Ecuador takes pride in having a Middle of the World Monument in Quito.
The monument is 30 meters tall and was constructed between 1979 and 1982 by Pichincha’s Province Council to replace an older, smaller monument built by the Government of Ecuador under the direction of the geographer Luis Tufiño in 1936. It is made of iron and concrete and covered with cut and polished andesite stone.
The actual placement of the equatorial line was defined back in 1736 during a French expedition mission. Apparently, thanks to modern technology the actual equator is off. However, like Diana from Ladydeelg suggests when in doubt you should just “Visit the Middle of the World, the historical one and the ACTUAL one (aka the Museo de Sitio Intiñan)”
However, since a trip to Ecuador is not in the future little one and I decided to make our very own Middle of the World Monument.
All you need is craft foam, paint (I ended up using gold spray paint), hot glue, a plastic ruler, and/or a butter knife.
- Measure 5 inches of the large foam and cut with either the ruler or the butter knife.
- From the medium rectangular foam cut off an inch and cut into 4 small pieces.
- The remaining medium is rectangular. Trim off the sides at the top.
- Hot glue the pieces and then spray paint! It’s super easy!
If you’re doing this with younger kids (mine is 9 yrs. old) make sure you supervise them with the hot glue and butter knife.
The most fun part for my son was spray painting it! You can also have the little ones paint with a painting brush.
If you’re planning a trip to Quito Ecuador take a look at these links:
From Inspired by Family: 14 Things to do with kids in Quito, Ecuador
From Ladydeelg: Train ride from Quito to Machachi
From Hispanic Mama: Recommended places to visit in Quito
For more resources on Ecuador visit Activity Village Co UK for some free printables
This post is part of Leanna from All Done Monkey’s 31 Days of ABC 2017 edition!
It’s time again for another fantastic month of alphabet fun with the 31 Days of ABC! All this month you can look forward to 31 more days of activities, crafts, books, apps, and more, all dedicated to teaching young children the alphabet.
I am so happy to be working with an amazing group of kid bloggers, who will be sharing their ideas with us in the coming days. So join us as we jump, skip, hop, and read our way through the alphabet this October!
Don’t forget to follow our 31 Days of ABCs Pinterest board for even more great ABC ideas!
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