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BBC Bitesize - GCSE Geography - Photos in geography - Revision 1

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Learn about photos in geography with BBC Bitesize GCSE geography

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BBC Bitesize - KS3 Geography - OS map skills - Revision 1

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Learn and revise about OS map skills, GPS, GIS and other mapping tools with BBC Bitesize KS3 Geography.

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BBC Bitesize - KS3 Geography - Atlas skills - Revision 1

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Geographers need to know how to use and interpret maps and atlases. In order to be able to use these as a source of information, they need a range of skills

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1. Brainstorm a list of common landforms.
Ask students to name some common landforms, such as hills, mountains, valleys, and plateaus. Sketch simple line drawings of each on the board. Ask: What is the main difference between hilly or mountainous terrain and flat terrain? Students should point out the differences in height. Explain to students that those differences are elevation changes. Tell students that in hilly and mountainous areas, the elevation of the land changes within the area-sometimes very quickly. In the flatter areas, elevation doesn't change as much. Introduce the term . Explain to students that relief is the amount of elevation change in the land surface within a given area.

2. Introduce contour maps.
Explain to students that a contour map is another name for a topographic map, or a map that shows the elevation of land on a flat paper surface. Ask: Why might this be useful? Elicit from students that contour maps are a convenient way to visualize flat and steep terrain, especially for hikers or other people navigating with maps. Remind students that an acronym is a word formed from the first letters of other words. Ask students if they have ever heard the acronym DOGSTAILS. Write the acronym on the board and explain to students that most topographic maps include these map essentials:
Date: when the map was made
Orientation: direction (north arrow or compass rose)
Grid: lines that cross to form squares
Scale: map distance
Title: what, where, and when
Author: who made the map
Index: the part of the grid where specific information can be located
Legend: what the symbols mean
Sources: who provided information for the map

3. Read a contour map of your area.
Use the Nat Geo Topo! Explorer website to find and display a contour map of your area. Point out the contour line s. Explain to students that these are imaginary lines that join points of equal elevation, and that they allow you to read the shape of the Earth's surface. Tell students that by reading contour lines, they can measure the steepness of a hill, the height of a mountain, and even the depth of a lake or ocean. Have students pinpoint a place where the contour lines are close together. Explain that the close lines mean the elevation is changing rapidly; those are steep places. Then have students pinpoint a place where the contour lines are far apart. Explain that the space indicates the elevation is not changing much; those are flat places. If the local relief is relatively flat, emphasize variation rather than extremes between steep and flat. Have students read the contour lines at the bottom and top of the highest place in your area. Have them subtract the lowest number from the highest to figure out the height of that landform.

4. Use symbols to identify other features on the contour map of your area.
Display the USGS Topographic Map Symbols PDF for students. Review some of the most common symbols. Then ask students to use those symbols to identify other human-made features on the contour map of your area. Have students identify each of the human-made features below and its symbol.

Encourage students to use what they learned about symbols to identify natural features and their symbols too.

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1. Brainstorm a list of common landforms. Ask students to name some common landforms, such as hills, mountains, valleys, and plateaus. Sketch simple line drawings of each on the board. Ask: What is the main difference between hilly or mountainous terrain and flat terrain? Students should point out the differences in height.

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1. Discuss different kinds of landforms.
Project the Landforms map and invite volunteers to point to the different landforms, name them, and read the descriptions. Show the photo gallery with examples of these landforms around the world. Ask students to describe experiences they have had of being near any of these landforms, or seeing them in a movie, in photos, or on a map. Ask:

Which landform is the highest? (mountain)

Which landforms are flat? (plateau, plain, coastal plain) How are they different? (one is high, one is low and close to a coast)

Can you name other landforms that you don't see on this drawing? (small streams or creeks, islands)

Which of these landforms are near our hometown or in our state?

You can project your state map using the National Geographic MapMaker Interactive and find locations of the different landforms students describe.
2. Have students read a state landform map.
Project the Landform Map of Virginia. Explain that a landform map shows the locations of landforms in a place. These maps often use color to show mountains, hills, plateaus, plains, and more. They also show major bodies of water. Guide students to read the map with these prompts:

Point to different colors on the map, and have students use the map key to name the type of landform.

Find the Piedmont. A piedmont is land at the foot of mountains. Ask: At the foot of what mountains is the Piedmont located? (Blue Ridge Mountains)

Find the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Allegheny Mountains. These are part of a group of mountains that stretches all the way from Canada to Alabama. Ask students if they can name that group. (Appalachian Mountains)

Find the Potomac River. Ask: Into what body of water does it flow? (Chesapeake Bay)

3. Have students read a United States landform map.
Project the Landform Map of the United States. Have students point out the lakes, rivers, oceans, peninsulas, islands, mountains, hills, plains, and plateaus. Ask:

What are the highest mountains, marked on this map, in different areas of the country?

In which states are they located?

Of the different landform types, where do you think most of the United States' food is grown?

The plains are where most country's agriculture is. Point out the Great Plains, one of the largest plains in the world, located in the center of the United States. Much of our food is grown in the rich soil of this plain. Also point out the plains in California where fruits and vegetables are grown and shipped all over the country. Have students name it. (Central Valley)
4. Have students research landforms in different states. 5. View the finished map.
Individually or in small groups, assign students one or two states to research the landforms. Give students copies of the state tabletop maps from the National Geographic State MapMaker Kits and provide markers, colored pencils, atlases, encyclopedias, and/or access to additional state resources such as the National Geographic MapMaker Interactive (topo layer). Have a whole class discussion to create a key for the map and to decide which information should be included. Have students mark their state map(s) showing the landforms and marking cities, parks, and other major landmarks.

Have a whole class discussion about the landform map. Ask: What patterns of landforms do you see that you had not noticed before? Students might point out that certain states have more lakes, rivers, or high areas than they realized. Have students write on an index card the name of a place they would like to visit in the state they researched. Have them explain why they would like to go there in 2-3 sentences. Display the maps with the cards attached to the maps in the hallway for others at school to see.

Informal Assessment

Check student's state maps for correct representation of the landforms of that state.

Extending the Learning

Have students work in small groups to build 3-D relief maps of the United States or their state, with landforms labeled. Have students choose material such as colored modeling clay or paper mache and paint. They can also be creative with cake and icing or other foods to make the shapes and colors of the land.

Have students use the MapMaker Interactive to see what else they can learn about landforms in their assigned state from the activity or the state where they live. Direct students to explore the different base maps-satellite, topographic, street, and so on-to see how different maps often highlight different landforms. See what landforms students can identify on the MapMaker Interactive that were not included on the MapMaker Kit tabletop maps. Have students use the drawing tools to identify and label different features and make an online map of landforms in their state.

Explain to students that people can visit and explore many of the landforms in the U.S. by visiting national parks. Have students use the National Park Service website and Google Earth to locate parks that feature different landforms. Have students map and find photos for the landforms they would see in parks such as the following:

Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado (mountains, lakes)

Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona (plateaus, rivers)

Crater Lake National Park (mountains, lakes)

Apostle Islands National Park, Wisconsin and Isle Royale National Park, Michigan (islands, lakes)

Smoky Mountains National Park, North Carolina and Tennessee (Mountains, lakes, rivers)

Denali National Park, Alaska (Mountains, lakes, rivers)

Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Ohio (Valleys, hills)

Credits

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Researchers

Lindsey Mohan, Ph.D.
Audrey Mohan, Ph.D.

Writer

Anne Haywood, Program Consultant, Environmental & Geographic Education

Editors

Sean P. O'Connor
Christina Riska Simmons, National Geographic Society

Copyeditor

Christina Riska Simmons, National Geographic Society

Educator Reviewer

Lydia Lewis, M.Ed., Grade 5 U.S. History/Geography Educator; National Cathedral School, Washington, D.C.

Sources

Adapted from National Geographic's Map Essentials: A Comprehensive Map Skills Program

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1. Discuss different kinds of landforms. Project the Landforms map and invite volunteers to point to the different landforms, name them, and read the descriptions. Show the photo gallery with examples of these landforms around the world.

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Mount Roraima

Photograph by Travel Ink

Mount Roraima, a tepui, or sandstone mesa, rises from the clouds in southeastern Venezuela. These rare 4,000-foot (1,200-meter) plateaus have lured adventurers to Venezuela's canyonlands for decades, and are believed to have inspired Sir Arthur Conan Doyle to write his 1912 novel, The Lost World.

Colorado's Roan Plateau

Photograph by Joel Sartore

A view from the sky shows the verdant undulations of central Colorado's Roan Plateau. The 3,500-foot (1,065-meter) cliffs in the foreground lead up to these rolling highlands, where oil and gas deposits are attracting the attentions of environmentalists and developers alike.

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Colorado Plateau, Utah

Photograph by John Eastcott and Yva Momatiuk

Content feed temporarily not available.

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Photograph by Travel Ink Mount Roraima, a tepui, or sandstone mesa, rises from the clouds in southeastern Venezuela. These rare 4,000-foot (1,200-meter) plateaus have lured adventurers to Venezuela's canyonlands for decades, and are believed to have inspired Sir Arthur Conan Doyle to write his 1912 novel, The Lost World.

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international general certificate of secondary education (school category)

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iGCSE/IB Geography - Upper Course Features Waterfalls

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Uploaded by geographypods on 2013-08-08.

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iGCSE/IB Geography - Rivers - Middle Course Features

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Uploaded by geographypods on 2013-08-08.

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iGCSE Geography Rivers - Lower Course Features - GeogPodCast

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I created this video with the YouTube Video Editor (http://www.youtube.com/editor)

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What is a meander - Geologist describes meandering streams, rivers and oxbow lakes.

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Difference between erosion and weathering

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Weathering and Erosion: Crash Course Kids #10.2

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BBC - KS3 Bitesize Geography - Settlement in urban areas : Revision, Page 3

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A key stage 3 Geography revision resource for settlement in urban areas. Sub-topics include: Site and situation, Settlement types, Settlement patterns, and Urban change and regeneration

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BBC - KS3 Bitesize Geography - Settlement in urban areas : Revision, Page 2

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A key stage 3 Geography revision resource for settlement in urban areas. Sub-topics include: Site and situation, Settlement types, Settlement patterns, and Urban change and regeneration

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BBC - GCSE Bitesize - Urban environments

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A secondary school revision source for GCSE Geography on the topic of urbanisation, settlement characteristics and urban environments across the globe.

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BBC Bitesize - KS3 Geography - Population and migration - Revision 2

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Learn and revise how population structure and migration changes around the world with BBC Bitesize KS3 Geography.

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A BBC Bitesize secondary school revision resource for Standard Grade Geography about settlement function: models of settlement function, OS map.

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BBC Bitesize - KS3 Geography - Population and migration - Revision 1

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Learn and revise how population structure and migration changes around the world with BBC Bitesize KS3 Geography.

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BBC Bitesize - KS3 Geography - Population and migration - Revision 3

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Learn and revise how population structure and migration changes around the world with BBC Bitesize KS3 Geography.

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Monde - Densité de population (2015) * Carte * PopulationData.net

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BBC - Intermediate 2 Bitesize Geography - World Population Distribution : Revision

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A BBC Bitesize secondary school revision resource for Intermediate 2 Geography

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Coal, Steam, and The Industrial Revolution: Crash Course World History #32

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BBC - KS3 Bitesize Geography - Settlement in urban areas : Revision, Page 4

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A key stage 3 Geography revision resource for settlement in urban areas. Sub-topics include: Site and situation, Settlement types, Settlement patterns, and Urban change and regeneration