Exploring World Geography (Notgrass)

Exploring World Geography is a one-year high school course from Notgrass History. Used as written, the publisher says it can earn one year of credit in each of three high school subjects: world geography, English, and worldview. The course includes a Gazetteer of maps, flags, country details, primary source documents, and photo essays, and a Literature Package of twelve titles.

Last updated: 2026-10-06 · Every Homeschool Editorial Team

At a glance

Method	Narrative lessons / literature-based / maps and primary sources in a Gazetteer
Worldview	Christian; the publisher states it has no formal statement of faith and no denominational bias or agenda
Grades	High school, grades 9-12
Formats	Printed books (Part 1, Part 2, Gazetteer, Student Review Pack, Literature Package) and a PDF digital download
Cost tier	Standard
Parent intensity	3
ESA-common	Notgrass lists purchasing instructions for several state funding programs
Accredited	Not stated on the publisher's pages
Publication history	Exploring World Geography has one edition, released in 2020; Notgrass History began developing curriculum in 1999
Website	notgrass.com

Our scoreboard (1-5)

Criterion	Score	One-line reason
Academic rigor	4	A survey of physical and human geography with Gazetteer readings, map skills assignments, unit quizzes, and exams
Ease of teaching	4	The student can read the daily lessons and follow the instructions independently; the parent can be involved as much or as little as desired
Content quality	5	Regional coverage in two parts, a Gazetteer with country entries and primary source documents, and twelve assigned literature titles
Flexibility	5	Three credits as written (world geography, English, worldview); the publisher says assignments can be adjusted and books substituted
Value for money	5	Bundle $265.00 and Curriculum Package $125.00 as of October 5, 2026; see the cost section
Worldview scope	2	Written from a Christian worldview; worldview lessons and assignments form one of the three credits
Visual/design	4	Gazetteer of maps, flags, country details, and photo essays
Support resources	3	Table of contents, video walkthrough, and look-inside pages; bonus downloads (assignment checklist, map skills assignments, literary analysis, project ideas, and Guide for Parents and Answer Key); phone, text, and email support

Who the publisher is

Notgrass History states that it exists to glorify God by producing materials centered in His Word that help parents train their children to honor God with heart, soul, and mind. The About page, signed by Ray and Charlene Notgrass, says that in 1999 they began to develop Bible-based, easy-to-use homeschool curriculum. The same page describes Ray Notgrass as the president of the publishing company and a lead curriculum author, and Charlene Notgrass as overseeing curriculum development and as a lead curriculum author.

The curriculum page lists the high school courses as Exploring America, Exploring Economics, Exploring Government, Exploring World Geography, and Exploring World History. Notgrass says each course stands alone and may be taken in any order within its level. Exploring World Geography is credited to Ray Notgrass in the publisher's course description and on the Curriculum Package page. The publisher's scope and sequence page calls it a one-year course that describes and explains the world we live in, focusing on how people interact with geography and how geography affects communities and countries. The Contact page lists a toll-free phone line with weekday hours, a text number, an email address, and a mailing address in Cookeville, Tennessee.

Notgrass says all of its curriculum is written from a clearly Christian perspective and includes Scripture quotations connected to the topics studied. Its statement of faith page says Notgrass has no formal statement of faith and does not promote one particular creed or confession, believes in the inspiration and authority of the Bible, and has no denominational bias or agenda. On geography specifically, the course introduction says the worldview survey looks at several religious systems besides Christianity from the perspective of outsiders, and that the authors express disagreement with those beliefs while aiming to show respect for the people who hold them.

The core pedagogy

Exploring World Geography has 150 lessons in 30 units of five lessons each, completed in one school year at one lesson per day. The course introduction says each unit has four geography lessons and a final worldview lesson. The course page describes Part 1 as 75 lessons covering the Middle East, Africa, Europe, and the Arctic and Antarctic, and Part 2 as 75 lessons covering Asia, Australia and Oceania, North America, Central America, the Caribbean, and South America. It says the curriculum addresses two main questions: how the physical world has made a difference in what people have done, how they have lived, and how they live today, and how people have made a difference in the physical world and are making a difference in it today.

Each unit has an introduction with a summary, a list of lessons, Bible memory work, the books used in that unit, and suggested writing assignments and hands-on projects. The Gazetteer holds maps, flags, and details about the countries of the world along with primary source documents and photo essays, and the course introduction says original source material from it is assigned once per unit. The Literature Package contains twelve fiction and nonfiction titles, among them Know Why You Believe by Paul Little, A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park, Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson, and Lost in the Barrens by Farley Mowat.

Signature mechanics: (1) Three credits from one course. The publisher says that if the course is used as written, a student can earn one year of credit in world geography, English, and worldview. Per the course page, the world geography credit involves the lessons, the Gazetteer entries and selections, map skills assignments, a quiz every unit, and an exam every five units. The English credit involves a project each unit, the assigned literature and literary analysis, questions on each book, and a literature exam every five units; the publisher's comparison page adds that the English credit includes writing assignments and one research paper. The worldview credit involves the worldview lessons, worldview assignments that guide the student in building a Christian worldview, review questions, and a worldview exam every five units. The publisher's course page and credits page name the third credit Worldview, while its course-description page for transcripts titles it "Bible: Worldview Survey." (2) A Gazetteer alongside the lessons. The Gazetteer is a supplemental resource book with maps and assigned readings. (3) Student-directed reading. The publisher says the student can read the daily lessons and follow the instructions independently. (4) An optional review pack. The course introduction describes the Student Review Pack as optional, and the publisher says the Curriculum Package does not include any review or test material or the recommended literature.

A day in the life

The course introduction tells the student to complete the following each day: read the lesson for the day; complete the Gazetteer, geography, worldview, and literature assignments listed for that lesson; complete the assignments in the optional Student Review, if used; and work on Bible memorization and the unit project. On the first day of a unit the student reads the unit introduction and chooses a project, and on the last day the student recites or writes the memory work and completes the project. The introduction says every fifth day includes reading the worldview lesson and answering its review questions, finishing the unit project, writing or reciting the memory verse, and taking the geography quiz. In twelve of the units the student also finishes a literature title, answers the review questions on it, and reads the literary analysis, and in six units the student takes the geography, English, and worldview exams covering the previous five units.

The introduction tells families to plan carefully what the student does each day and suggests spreading the work across the unit, for example finishing the project and the literature title on Day 4. The Student Review Pack includes a Guide for Parents and Answer Key, which has suggestions on grading, notes on the literature, and the answers to the review questions, quizzes, and exams; the answer key is also available as a free download. Notgrass says the course is flexible and that assignments can be adjusted to fit a student's schedule and needs.

What they do exceptionally well

Three credits from one course design. The publisher builds world geography, English, and worldview into one set of daily assignments, and lists the work behind each credit on its How It Works page. Families with a high school student who needs all three subjects and wants a single schedule can see the requirements for each credit before buying.

Literature chosen to illustrate geography. The course introduction says the literature was chosen to illustrate geography in various places around the world, and asks the student to note geographic features, the region, and the culture of the people, and how these fit into each story. It also asks the student to notice the worldview of the characters and the clues to the author's worldview. The setting of each book is treated as a place in geography.

A Gazetteer of maps and country entries. The Gazetteer includes maps of the continents and regions discussed in the text, a section on each country of the world, and the original source material assigned once per unit, per the course introduction. The publisher's Gazetteer page lists maps, flags, country details, primary source documents, and photo essays.

What they do poorly

The worldview component is part of the course design. One lesson in each unit is a worldview lesson, and one of the three credits is a worldview credit built on those lessons and assignments. Notgrass says the course is flexible and that assignments can be adjusted, but families who want a world geography course without Christian worldview instruction and Bible memory work in each unit will be adjusting the course rather than using it as designed.

Other faith systems are presented from a stated Christian perspective. The course introduction says the authors look at other faith systems from the perspective of outsiders, that they express disagreement with those beliefs and why they believe Christianity is true, and that they aim to avoid demeaning language and show respect for the people who hold them. Families who want comparative-religion content written from a religious-studies perspective rather than from the publisher's stated perspective will find a different approach.

The full three-credit load needs planning. The introduction lists the weekly, unit, and five-unit tasks described above and says families will need to plan carefully what the student does each day. The publisher also says the course is flexible and the assignments can be adjusted.

Not designated as AP or honors. Notgrass says its courses are not officially designated honors or AP courses and that it did not design its curriculum to align with any state or private standards, such as Common Core or College Board AP standards.

Who it fits / who it doesn't

• Pick Exploring World Geography if: you want one course to cover world geography, English, and worldview on one schedule; you want Christian worldview lessons as a graded part of a geography course; you want a Gazetteer of maps and country entries alongside the lessons; you want literature chosen to illustrate geography; you have a student in grades 9-12 who can read the daily lessons and follow instructions independently.

• Skip Exploring World Geography if: you want a world geography course without Christian worldview lessons and Bible memory work in each unit; you want other religions presented from a religious-studies or comparative frame rather than the publisher's stated perspective; you need a course officially designated AP or honors; you want geography organized by period rather than by region; your student is outside grades 9-12, since Notgrass generally advises against using a course outside its stated level.

Cost honest assessment

Prices displayed on shop.notgrass.com on October 5, 2026: the Exploring World Geography Bundle is $265.00 and includes the Curriculum Package, Literature Package, and Student Review Pack. Sold separately, the Curriculum Package (Part 1, Part 2, and the Gazetteer) is $125.00, the Literature Package is $125.00, and the Student Review Pack is $20.00. Part 1 and Part 2 are $50.00 each and the Gazetteer is $40.00. The PDF digital download is $145.00; the page says printing is permitted for the purchaser's household only and that refunds are not available on digital purchases.

The Student Review Pack includes a Student Review Book and a consumable Quiz and Exam Book; Notgrass says students write in the Quiz and Exam Book and that extra copies can be bought for additional students. The Guide for Parents and Answer Key is available as a free download. Notgrass says it keeps its prices low all year rather than running sales and sells scratch-and-dent copies and older editions at a discount.

For comparison, Master Books World Geography and Cultures is $83.18 for the student book and course guide set, a one-year, one-credit high school course (retrieved October 2026). Notgrass lists each component of its course separately, so a family can price only the parts it needs. A family buying the Curriculum Package and the Student Review Pack without the Literature Package pays $125.00 plus $20.00; a family buying the Bundle pays $265.00.

ESA eligibility notes

Notgrass says it takes no position for or against state funding programs. Its State Funding page lists purchasing instructions for programs in Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming. Its state pages say Notgrass History is registered as a vendor in Alabama's CHOOSE, the Arizona Empowerment Scholarship Account, Arkansas Education Freedom Accounts, Florida Step Up for Students, the Georgia Promise Scholarship, the Indiana Education Scholarship Account, North Carolina Education Student Accounts, the South Carolina Education Scholarship Trust Fund, Texas Education Freedom Accounts, and Utah Fits All. The Idaho page says that program is closed to new applications. The Montana page describes a reimbursement program for children with disabilities, and the West Virginia page describes ordering with a browser extension. Program rules differ by state, so families should read the Notgrass page for their state and confirm with the program before ordering.

Alternatives

• Master Books World Geography and Cultures, whose product page says the course begins with the conviction that God is the Creator of the earth and all who inhabit it, invites students to explore landforms (since the Flood), climates, oceans, resources, and peoples, and is a one-year, one-credit course for grades 9-12 with a student book and course guide.
• Memoria Press Geography (I, II, III), a family would choose Memoria Press over Notgrass for a classical-curriculum approach organized around specific regions or periods at middle-school level, with shorter unit-book structure and recitation-heavy pedagogy.
• Seterra or World Geography Flashcards-based approach, a family would choose a drill-and-map approach over Notgrass for students who need fact-mastery and geographic memorization rather than a narrative-and-literature humanities credit.