SOCIAL STUDIES

We have been working on the United States and Canada in Chapter 1, the activity atlas. We spent the last two weeks working on learning the 50 states in the US. We studied maps and discussed latitude and longitude. Students worked on activities to assist them with learning what physical geography is and what it tells us about the US and Canada.

This week the students began reading Chapter 1, Section 1 Physical Geography. The students created vocabulary study guides to help them learn the key terms in this section of chapter 1.

Glacier-a huge, slow moving sheet of ice
Tundra-A cold, dry region covered with snow for more than half the year in the Artic
Permafrost-permenantly frozen subsoil, thaws only during the Artic summer
Prairie-a region of flat or rolling land covered with grass
Alluvial-the silt that is left by rivers after a flood
Tributary-stream that flows into a larger river
Continental Divide-Rocky Mountains that separate rivers flowing toward opposite sides of the continent.
Irrigation-watering farmland by artificial methods

The students have read chapter 1, section 1 two times. Once silently and once as a read a loud in the class. We discussed the key terms as we read them in the chapter and how they relate to the physical geography of the US and Canada.

HOMEWORK-students are asked to find a current event that discusses the US or Canada. They may look in the newspaper, internet or a magazine to locate an article.
Suggested news sites were:
CNN, Delaware Online (News Journal), New York Post or Washington Post.