When I first discovered that Greenland and Canada were not really that big during one of my many wikipedia tours as a kid, I was incredibly disappointed.
Seriously?
But 99% of the time, a kid would see the world via maps in books, notebooks, projected onto the board, etc.
And we didn't have a "geography classroom". We had one classroom for a set number of kids - like 8A, 8B, etc. (where "8" is the class/grade). The teachers would come in and go as per the period. The kids stayed right where they were.
I come from a small town, but I still managed to do fine for myself.