Early Settlements
When establishing a settlement, people must consider the physical needs of their community first. Basic necessities like water, food and protection from elements are of the highest priority. Climate will also have a large impact on a potential settlement. The type of climate will affect the crops that can be grown, and what sort of harsh conditions will the settlement be subjected to. Each land area settled has favorable characteristics that made early settlers want to establish a community in that region.
For example, the city of Caracas, Venezuela was settled just behind the Coastal Cordillera Mountain range. There is a small patch of land on the northern, coastal side of this range. Thus, the city was built in the rift valley just south of the range. According to Medina, José Ramón and Minkel, C.W.. "Caracas". The city of Caracas was settled in 1557 when a ranch was established in the valley in 1557 by Francisco Fajardo, the son of a Spanish captain and an Indian chief’s daughter, and in 1561 Juan Rodríguez Suárez founded a town on the site of the ranch. This location provided the settlers with opportunity to gain fresh water from the mountains, grow food in the plains and have protection from possible oceanic weather conditions. In addition to the city being protected from harsh weather conditions, the people were protected from pirate attacks. These attacks would have targeted the natural resources grown there such as gold and cocoa which play a vital role in the economic structure of the country.
Culture
Culture is defined by National Geographic as “The shared characteristics of a group of people, which encompasses, place of birth, religion, language, cuisine, social behaviors, art, literature, and music”. I believe that our natural, physical world impacts culture a great deal. Fig. 1 gives a map of the characteristics of culture. Students should explore connections between these characteristics and the physical world. We can use higher order thinking questions(H.O.T) to connect these traits. We cannot exclusively identify characteristics of culture without understanding or respecting the foundation and origination of said characteristics.
Fig.1 www.adorngeo.com/2-changing-identities-and-cultures.html
For example, if we are to classify food as a cultural trait, we must understand that certain cultures will have access to particular food grown in that region. If the country is composed of islands, then their traditional food will contain more seafood than a country that is located inland. A similar conclusion can be drawn about the material available to create musical instruments or housing/structures. Here in the Northeast, we use a great deal of wood to create our homes. However, in parts of the world they might have more clay to make bricks with so homes would be constructed differently. Another factor to consider is the traditional dress of a culture. A culture that is located near the equator will naturally have a different weight than a culture located in a higher elevation.
Types of Maps
Fig 2. https://www.slideshare.net/slideshow/types-of-maps-26047481/26047481
As part of the unit of study, students will be required to understand the difference between maps. Various maps show different information. Students will need to understand what map they will need to get the information they need. Fig.2 shows a representation of various kinds of maps that you may want to use to determine the differences.
Political Map: Shows the manmade boarders of countries. These maps can also include highways and roads.
Physical Map: Is a map that depicts the physical features of an area. This map will include mountains, rivers, lakes, and continents. Often times there will be a correlation between boarders on a political map and physical features such as rivers.
Thematic Maps: this type of map will show a theme. The map will have a title that will indicate what the viewer is looking at. These types of maps can include in this unit maps of natural resources in an area or a map of natural disasters.
Topographic or Raised Relief Map: This map will show features such as mountains, valleys and plains. This is a good map to reference when trying to understand the landscape of a country.
Fig 3. https://kids.britannica.com/kids/assembly/view/87294
Key Map Features
In order for students to fully understand how to utilize and create a map of their own, they must understand the key features of a map. We must develop map reading skills which include identifying the Equator and Prime Meridian. The Equator is the line of latitude that cuts the Earth in half. The Prime Meridian is the line of longitude that cuts the Earth in half lengthwise. Together these two lines create two pairs of hemispheres. Once the Equator and Prime Meridian is traced, students can identify the hemispheres. The pairs of hemispheres are the four quadrants of the globe. A hemisphere can be defined as the area on one side of any circle that has been drawn around the Earth and divides the Earth into two similar halves. Two pairs of different hemispheres are generally considered by geographers. These are the Northern and Southern, and Eastern and Western hemispheres. This is easier to do when a compass rose is used to identify North, South, East and West on the map. Understanding the basic layout of the globe will help students understand where in the physical world they are talking about.
Students should be able to understand that the equator is located at zero degrees. Latitude and longitude lines are used to chart a location on Earth using a grid system of horizontal and vertical lines called graticule lines. Latitude lines, also known as parallels, run horizontally and measure distance north or south from the equator, which has physical basis in connection to Earth’s daily rotation. Longitude lines, also known as meridians, run vertically from pole to pole and measure distance east or west from Greenwich, England, which is the [arbitrarily selected] prime meridian and corresponds to 0°.
Landscape of a Country
The type of landscape a country has will impact the evolution of culture. This will impact the food a culture is known for, the kind of clothes a culture wears and the type of minerals that are used in their traditional art. It will also determine what kind of materials are used for building structures.
In regards to food, vegetables like carrots, parsnips, turnips, radishes, and beets, as well as leafy greens, peas, broccoli, and cauliflower can grow well in the mountains. Lettuce, apples and herbs can also thrive in the mountains. In tropical climates, plants that grow above ground or on frees will be more advantageous. The food grown will need to be able to grown in warm, moist conditions. Also, the soil conditions will impact the food grown. It will have to be soil that is well draining soil. Food such as dates, black beans, agave, and couscous will be found in dessert regions.
In regards to materials available to use for building structures, forested areas will certainly have lumber readily available. Those areas located in dessert or hot areas will probably use more clay and brick in their structures. In addition, areas that have natural resources such as iron ore will also have a greater opportunity for creating structures out of steel. This will also impact the countries economic resources.
Natural Disasters
A natural disaster is defined by the Stafford Act as, any natural catastrophe (including any hurricane, tornado, storm, high water, wind-driven water, tidal wave, tsunami, earthquake, volcanic eruption, landslide, mudslide, snowstorm, or drought) or, regardless of cause, any fire, flood or explosion, in any part of the United States. These are violent storms or occurrences that cause significant damage and are outside human control. They are caused by the forces of nature. There are many types of natural disasters. Natural disasters will impact the way a settlement uses the land they live on and vice versa. For this unit more focus will be placed on natural disasters such as volcanic eruptions and earthquakes than other natural disasters mentioned.
Land is constantly changing. It is important to understand that earthquakes and volcanos [mostly] occur at the boundaries between of two tectonic plates interacting with each other. There are three different kinds of plate boundaries; divergent, convergent and transform. Depending on what kind of boundary is in the area will determine the landscape of the country. Fig. 4 offers a visual guide to how these boundaries interact with one another.
Divergent
Two tectonic plates move away from each other, which can cause mild to moderate earthquakes and tend to have many basaltic volcanoes. Magma rises from the mantle to the surface and solidifies to create new oceanic crust. The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is an example of a divergent plate boundary.
Convergent
Two plates move toward each other and collide. If the plates are of equal density, they usually push up against each other to form a mountain chain. If they are of unequal density, one plate usually sinks beneath the other in a process called subduction. Subduction can cause deep ocean trenches and volcanoes to form. About 80% of earthquakes occur at convergent boundaries including the most severe shocks ever recorded.
Fig. 4 https://geographicbook.com/types-of-plate-boundaries/
Transform
Two plates slide past each other horizontally. Lithosphere is neither created nor destroyed at transform boundaries. Many transform boundaries are found on the sea floor, connecting segments of mid-ocean ridges; but some rise onto the land. The San Andreas Fault in California is a well-known example of a transform plate boundary, and is responsible for many of California's earthquakes.
Pangea
Pangea was a supercontinent that included nearly all landmasses that are on Earth. All the modern continents fit together to form one giant continent that was surrounded by a global ocean called Panthalassa. The existence of Pangea allowed animals to migrate between land masses, which led to the evolution of different species and unique climates. According to Britannica online, German meteorologist Alfred Wegener was the first scientist to propose the existence of Pangea in 1912, creating his theory of continental drift. Wegener noticed that fossils and similar rock formations were found across continents in ways that wouldn't be possible if the continents were in their current locations
Fig. 5 shows an example of what the super continent of Pangea looked like originally. Over the course of 200 million years due to continental drift, the super continent broke apart.
As the Earth’s land masses broke apart and collided this caused earthquakes and volcanos. Depending on the type of fault line the land has, will affect the physical landscape.
Fig 5. https://www.livescience.com/38218-facts-about-pangea.html