In our district, the compass rose (la rosa naútica) is taught in third grade in the regular classroom curriculum. I find that once the regular classroom teacher has covered the material, the reintroduction is very easy. My goal is to have the children experience the concept of north/south/east/west through a simulation.
To review the directionals, I place four children as markers, holding signs for north/south/east/west in the correct spots according to the real compass. Or I simply place these signs in high places around each classroom I visit.
I display the Spanish flag and use Almirante Cristóbal Colón and his sailors as the main characters. Christopher Columbus (first the teacher, then children takes turns) marches in with great authority, holding a telescope under his arm and accompanied by a child holding the Italian flag, then salutes and greets his marineros. Then he says, "Marineros, miran el norte." The children as sailors turn in that direction and receive commands from him to turn to the other directions. The children learn "noroeste, etc," too. The children love this activity and beg to take a turn being Colón.
Here is a compass rose "fill-in" to complement this lesson:
