Extreme planet earth.Embark with your middle- and upper-graders on an adventure around the world! Distribute the Extreme Planet Earth Reproducible, page 62, then direct students to begin their interactive hunt at www.scholastic.com/cyberhuntkids Extreme Souvenirs www.gahooligans.com/aroundtheworld Have students plan their own trips to points far around the world, research their destinations in depth, then come up with a list of five or 10 native flora and fauna fauna All the species of animals found in a particular region, period, or special environment. Five faunal realms, based on terrestrial animal species, are generally recognized: Holarctic, including Nearactic (North America) and Paleartic (Eurasia and northern Africa); that they might bring home from their trip. Encourage them to be as fantastical as they wish in deciding what to bring back with them. For example, a trip to Alaska might produce a polar bear polar bear, large white bear, Ursus maritimus, formerly Thalarctos maritimus, of the coasts of arctic North America. Polar bears usually live on drifting pack ice, but sometimes wander long distances inland. , an iceberg, or a willow grouse (Zool.) the white ptarmigan. See ptarmigan. See also: Willow , the state bird. Let students find photographs of each item on their lists in magazines or on Web sites, and distribute shopping bags for them to hold their mementos. Then give each student a chance to rifle through their bags and share with the class what they've brought back from their "trip." Geography Wheel of Fortune www.enchantedlearning.com/geography/ Reinforce geography and listening skills by inviting students to pay this easy, Wheel of Fortune-style puzzle game. Begin by asking students, working in two teams, to visit this site and compile geography-related vocabulary words and phrases Words and Phrases® A multivolume set of law books published by West Group containing thousands of judicial definitions of words and phrases, arranged alphabetically, from 1658 to the present. . Then give each team a chance to write out simple clues, such as "this six-letter word is a geographical term for tree-less, flat area." Students on the opposing team take runs guessing letters to complete the word or phrase, and can guess the correct answer during their turn. If a student guesses a letter correctly, he or she gets another turn. If he or she gets the entire word or phrase, that team gets a point. Feats of Engineering www.engineeringsights.org Since the beginning of time, humans have engineered solutions to the challenges of geography. The Hoover Dam Hoover Dam, 726 ft (221 m) high and 1,244 ft (379 m) long, on the Colorado River between Nev. and Ariz.; one of the world's largest dams. Built between 1931 and 1936 by the U.S. , Europe's Channel Tunnel Channel Tunnel, popularly called the "Chunnel," a three-tunnel railroad connection running under the English Channel, connecting Folkestone, England, and Calais, France. The tunnels are 31 mi (50 km) long. There are two rail tunnels, each 25 ft (7. , the Golden Gate Bridge Golden Gate Bridge, across the Golden Gate from San Francisco to Marin Co., W Calif.; built 1933–37. Its overall length is 9,266 ft (2,824 m); its main span across the strait, 4,200 ft (1,280 m), is one of the longest bridges in the world. Joseph B. , and the Panama Canal Panama Canal, waterway across the Isthmus of Panama, connecting the Atlantic (by way of the Caribbean Sea) and Pacific oceans, built by the United States (1904–14) on territory leased from the republic of Panama. are fine examples of this. Give your students a chance to learn about some of the most famous examples of structures built to overcome a variety of geographic features. Invite students to click on the interactive U.S. map or visit www.teachingtools.com/Slinky/feats.html to learn about specific engineering achievements. Then have them make models of their favorites. Weather Watch www.weather.com/activities/travel/vacationplanner/?from=travfl Have students plan their own trips to locations around the world, then come up with a list of 10 items that they will bring to their chosen cities. Have them start by checking out the weather conditions in a number of countries, then choose a destination and a travel date. Next, ask students to brainstorm what they would need for their trips and why, based on their research. For example, would they need a bathing suit for an August trip to Australia? Why or why not? (No, because during the month of August, it is actually winter in Australia!) Waving the Flag www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags Invite each student to find the flag from the country that he or she has just "visited," print out a black and white image from the "Colouring Book" section, and color it accordingly. When students have finished their flags, display them all around a world map. Use push pins and colored string to link each flag to the appropriate country. Students could also use their flags as geography report covers. More Earth Links www.kids.gov/k_geography.htm A collection of links to geography games, maps, trivia questions, and more. www.kathimitchell.com/geo.htm An enormous resource for geography, mapping, and educational kids' links. www.unc.edu/-jmaxim/web_geography_for_kids.htm Links to color landform land·form n. One of the features that make up the earth's surface, such as a plain, mountain, or valley. landform A recognizable, naturally formed feature on the Earth's surface. maps, printable print·a·ble adj. 1. Capable of being printed or of producing a print: printable negatives. 2. Fit for publication: printable language. outline maps, stats, geography games, and more. EXTREME PLANET EARTH CYBERHUNT SAFETY: All of the sites contained in the CyberHunt have been reviewed by our staff. At press time, all links are safe and consist of educational material. However, we are unable to control transfers of URLS after publication. We strongly urge teachers to review all sites before sharing them with students. Do you know where the hottest place on Earth is? How about the deepest? Set off on an adventure across the Web to learn all about these and other points of extreme geography! Start your trek online at www.scholastic.com/cyberhuntkids, then write your answers below. 1 The Sahara Desert in the country of -- is the HOTTEST place on Earth. In 1922, it hit the highest temperature recorded anywhere on earth, ever. How hot was it? -- www.extremescience.com/hottest.htm 2 Where is the COLDEST place on earth? At Lake Vostok Lake Vostok (Russian: восток, "east") is the largest of more than 140 subglacial lakes found under the surface of Earth's southern-most continent— Antarctica. , located in --, the temperature once reached the lowest ever recorded: --. (Even the penguins think it's cold!) www.nsf.gov/od/lpa/news/02/fslakevostok.htm 3 The Atacama Desert Atacama Desert (ätäkä`mä), arid region, c.600 mi (970 km) long, N Chile, extending south from the border of Peru. The desert itself, c. in -- is the DRIEST place on earth. Even though it hardly ever rains there, flocks of pink flamingos (and some people) survive by collecting water from --. www.extremescience.com/DriestPlace.htm 4 Mount Waialeale Mount Waialeale (Hawaiian: Waiʻaleʻale or "rippling waters"), elevation 5,148 ft (1,569 m), is the second highest point on the island of Kauai in the , located on the island of --, is the world's WETTEST place, receiving an average of -- inches of rain a year. This means you could see a rainbow there nearly every day! www.harcourtschool.com/activity/extreme/html_docs/Wettest.html 5 At 29,208 feet high, Mount Everest, located in --, is the HIGHEST mountain in the world. Who were the first two brave people to summit its majestic peak in 1953? -- www.italysoft.com/curios/everest/ 6 The DEEPEST point on earth, the Marianas Trench Marianas trench, Marianas trough, or Marianas deep (mâr'ēăn`əz), elongated depression on the Pacific Ocean floor, 210 mi (338 km) SW of Guam. It is the deepest (35,798.6 ft/10,911. , is located more than 35,000 feet down at the bottom of the -- Ocean, just east of --. It's farther below sea level than Everest is above! www.geocities.com/thesciencefiles/marianas/trench.html 7 Russia, which is almost twice the size of the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. , is the LARGEST country in the world. It is located on two continents: -- and --. It's so large, it spans 11 different time zones! www.peacecorps.gov/kids/world/europemed/russia.html 8 The mighty Amazon river Amazon River Portuguese Rio Amazonas River, northern South America. It is the largest river in the world in volume and area of drainage basin; only the Nile River of eastern and northeastern Africa exceeds it in length. , which begins in -- and ends along the coast of Brazil, is the world's second-longest river. Which river is the LONGEST and where is it located? -- www.newint.org/issue273/facts.html CyberHunt Answers to the Reproducible, page 62: 1. Libya. 136 degrees Fahrenheit. 2. Antarctica. -128.6 degrees Fahrenheit. 3. Chile. The salt lakes, snow, underground, the fog and dew. 4. Kauai, Hawaii. 460. 5. Nepal, India. Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay Tenzing Norgay (born May 15, 1914, Tshechu, Tibet [now Tibet Autonomous Region, China]—died May 9, 1986, Darjeeling [now Darjiling], India) Tibetan Sherpa mountaineer. . 6. Pacific. The Philippines. 7. Europe. Asia. 8. Peru. The Nile, in Egypt. CYBERHUNT SAFETY: All of the sites contained in the CyberHunt have been reviewed by our staff. At press time, all links are safe and consist of educational material. However, we are unable to control transfers of URLS after publication. We strongly urge teachers to review all sites before sharing them with students. |
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