LOCATION IN AFRICA
by Richard Jensen of Battle Creek Middle School
St. Paul, Minnesota
THEME: LOCATION
GRADE LEVEL: 8
OVERVIEW: To participate fully in the study of any region the student must have a working knowledge of the physical and political geography of the region.
SUBJECTS: Geography
REQUIRED MATERIALS:
Classroom Atlas
National Geographic Map Africa Today/ Africa’s
Natural Realms
Blank paper
Colored pencils
OPTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES:
OBJECTIVES:
Define latitude and longitude range of Africa
Describe the relative location of Africa
Identify, locate, draw and label the countries of Africa
Identify, locate, draw and label the significant physical features of Africa
Classify the countries of Africa by region
PROCEDURE:
OPENING: What is the absolute location for Africa? This should elicit discussion of finding the latitude and longitude range for Africa.
What it the point of Africa that is furthest north? What is its latitude? What point of Africa is the furthest south? What is the latitude? This is the latitude range. What part of Africa is furthest east? What is the longitude? What part of Africa is furthest west? What is the longitude? This is the longitude range. Where is Africa compared to Europe, North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia, and Antarctica?
CLOSING: Now that the students have been introduced to the location of Africa they will know enough to begin to use classroom maps, atlases, textbooks, or online resources to make their maps.
STUDENT ONLINE ACTIVITIES:
The student’s maps should be accurate to scale and location of countries and physical features.
Color should be used to illustrate the different regions of Africa.
Symbols should be consistent and logical.
DEFINITIONS:
latitude range- area covered by of a region measures in degrees from north to south
longitude range- area covered by of a region measures in degrees from east to west.
Sahel- place in Africa that forms a border between the Sahara and the savanna
Rift- a deep crack in the earth’s surface
GEOGRAPHY STANDARDS: 1, 2, 3, 8
WEB LINKS FOR TEACHERS AND STUDENTS:
www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/africa.html
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
How much of Africa is north of the equator? How much of Africa is in the middle latitudes? What natural advantages and disadvantages does each region possess?
EXTENSION ACTIVITIES:
Students identify the natural advantages and disadvantages of several countries.
CREDITS:
Richard Jensen
Battle Creek Middle School
St. Paul, Minnesota
LOCATION IN AFRICA
Objective: Create a political and physical map of Africa.
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OCEANS |
MOUNTAINS AND PLATEAUS |
RIVERS AND LAKES |
DESERTS |
OTHER LANDFORMS |
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Mediterranean Sea |
Atlas Mountains |
Nile River |
Sahara |
Great Rift Valley |
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Atlantic Ocean |
Ahaggar Mountains |
Niger River |
Kalahari |
Qattara Depression |
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Straits of Gibraltar |
Ethiopian Plateau |
White Nile |
Namib |
Serengheti Plain |
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Mozambique Channel |
Mount Kilimanjaro |
Blue Nile |
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Congo Basin |
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Indian Ocean |
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Orange River |
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Sahel |
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Red Sea |
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Limpopo River |
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Cape of Good Hope |
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Gulf of Guinea |
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Congo River |
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Zambezi River |
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Lake Chad |
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Lake Nassar |
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Lake Tanganyika |
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Lake Nyasa |
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Lake Victoria |
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3. Color the countries to show four regions of Africa.
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North Africa |
East Africa |
West Africa |
Central and Southern Africa |
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Algeria |
Burundi |
Benin |
Cameroon |
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Egypt |
Djibouti |
Burkina Faso |
Central Africa Republic |
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Libya |
Eritrea |
Cape Verde |
Democratic Republic of the Congo |
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Morocco |
Ethiopia |
Chad |
Republic of the Congo |
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Tunisia |
Kenya |
Coite D’ Ivoire |
Equatorial Guinea |
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Western Sahara |
Rwanda |
The Gambia |
Gabon |
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Seychelles |
Ghana |
Sao Tome and Principe |
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Somalia |
Guinea |
Angola |
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Sudan |
Guinea-Bissau |
Botswana |
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Tanzania |
Liberia |
Comoros |
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Uganda |
Mali |
Lesotho |
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Mauritania |
Madagascar |
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Niger |
Malawi |
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Nigeria |
Mauritius |
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Senegal |
Mozambique |
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Sierra Leone |
Namibia |
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Togo |
South Africa |
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Swaziland |
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Zambia |
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Zimbabwe |
4. Be sure that your map has a title, compass rose, scale and a key.
CLIMATE AND
VEGETATION IN AFRICA
THEME: Location, Place and Region
GRADE LEVEL: 8
OVERVIEW: Africa has a great variety of climates. The climates of Africa can best be compared by graphing data for temperature and precipitation.
SUBJECTS: Geography, Mathematics
REQUIRED MATERIALS:
Internet access
National Geographic classroom map: Africa’s Natural
Realms
OPTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES:
OBJECTIVES:
Identify one location in each of the four regions of Africa
Research the average monthly temperature and precipitation for each location
Use a climate graph to graph the data
Analyze the climate graph to determine the likely vegetation for each location
PROCEDURE:
OPENING:
What is the climate where you live? Describe the climate? Look at the map of Africa. Are there places in Africa that have a climate like yours.
DEVELOPMENT:
Students conduct their research and complete their climate graphs.
CLOSING:
Students analyze the graphs to determine what is the most likely vegetation in each region. Then using vegetation maps determine the accuracy of their predictions.
STUDENT ONLINE ACTIVITIES:
Conduct research on the average monthy temperature and precipitation.
SUGGESTED ASSESSMENT
The graph should serve as the assessment.
DEFINITIONS:
Precipitation- moisture that falls to the ground
Climate graph- a graphic organizer that uses line and bar graphs to compare average monthly temperature and precipitation.
GEOGRAPHY STANDARDS: 8 and 15
WEB LINKS FOR TEACHERS AND STUDENTS:
www.worldclimate.com- database of climate information for locations around the world
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
How much of the precipitation you have described in your graph falls as snow?
EXTENSION ACTIVITIES:
Predict the likely population density of your locations based on temperature and precipitation. Compare you predictions with a population density map and explain any differences.
CREDITS:
Richard Jensen
Battle Creek Middle School
St. Paul, Minnesota
Africa Location and Place
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JAN |
FEB |
MAR |
APR |
MAY |
JUN |
JUL |
AUG |
SEPT |
OCT |
NOV |
DEC |
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F° |
54.3 |
57.0 |
62.4 |
69.4 |
75.9 |
81.0 |
82.6 |
82.0 |
77.4 |
73.0 |
65.3 |
69.8 |
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IN |
.3 |
.2 |
.1 |
.1 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
.1 |
.2 |
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