| Grade 7: Patterns in Physical Geography |
|
Overall Expectations |
| identify patterns in physical geography and explain
the factors that produce them; |
| use a variety of resources and tools to gather, process,
and communicate geographic information about the earth's physical features
and patterns; |
| explain how patterns of physical geography
affect human activity around the world. |
|
Specific Expectations |
| Knowledge and Understanding |
| identify various types of landforms and explain how
they are used to describe regions; |
| identify and describe world landform patterns (e.g.,
fold mountains along the west coast of North and South America, continental
drainage basins and river systems); |
| explain how world climate patterns
result from the interaction of several factors (i.e., latitude, altitude,
global wind systems, air masses, proximity to large bodies of water, ocean
currents); |
| identify the effects of natural phenomena
(e.g., tornadoes, earthquakes, hurricanes) on people and the environment;
|
| explain how natural vegetation patterns
result from the interaction of several factors, including climate, landforms,
soil types, and competition for available nutrients (e.g., landforms:
plains/grains; climate: tropics/fruit); |
| identify major river systems of the world (e.g., the
Amazon, the Nile, the St. Lawrence, the Mississippi, the Yangtze) and
describe their drainage patterns as either dendritic or trellis; |
| identify the characteristics of the
three types of agriculture – subsistence, commercial, and specialized
– and the differing climate, topography, and soil conditions that
are favourable to each type; |
| describe how the following major factors influence commercial
agriculture: location, climate, raw materials, market, labour, transportation. |
| Developing Inquiry/Research and Communication Skills |
| formulate questions to guide research for a comparative
study of physical patterns (e.g., What features characterize different
types of river drainage systems around the world? What are the similarities
and differences between the Cascade Mountains and the Rocky Mountains?
What effect does pollution of the Great Lakes have on the lives of Canadians?
What effect does acid precipitation have on the forest industry?); |
| locate relevant information using
a variety of primary and secondary sources (e.g., primary sources: aerial
photographs, satellite images, interviews, field studies; secondary sources:
climate maps, illustrations, print materials, videos, CD-ROMs, Internet
sites); |
| communicate the results of inquiries and analyses for
specific purposes and audiences, using computer slide shows, videos, websites,
oral presentations, written notes and descriptions, drawings, tables,
charts, diagrams, maps, models, and graphs (e.g., create a map showing
the relationship between physical features of the country and recreational
activities; create a model of different physical patterns; present a computer
slide show of how the mountain ranges of the world were created); |
| use appropriate vocabulary, including correct geographic
terminology (e.g., classify, climate graph, pattern, latitude, altitude,
contour lines), to describe their inquiries and observations. |
| Map, Globe, and Graphic Skills |
| use a variety of thematic and topographic maps to identify
patterns in physical geography; |
| construct, interpret, and compare climate graphs; |
| use contour lines to represent elevation on maps (e.g.,
Mount Olympus, Mount Pelée, Fuji-san); |
| draw cross-sectional diagrams from topographic maps
(e.g., of landforms, river profiles). |
| Application |
| investigate and report on world patterns
of landforms, climate, and vegetation that are favourable to specialized
types of commercial agriculture (e.g., tree farming, potatoes, cotton,
rice, coffee, bananas, tobacco, sugar cane, sheep, beef, dairy farming);
|
| investigate the physical features and climate
of a variety of popular tourist destinations and use a decision-making
model to select an ideal travel destination. |