Comprehension Questions:

Transcription

1 Unit 3: Central & South america Comprehension Questions: 1. What is the driest desert on earth? Atacama Desert 2. What two water routes were discovered in the 1500s to get around the tip of South America? Which was safer?_ The Drake Passage and the Strait of Magellan; the Drake Passage was more dangerous, due to high winds, strong currents, and icebergs. 3. What is the easiest route to take from the Atlantic to the Pacific today? the Panama Canal 4. What is unique about Angel Falls? It is the highest waterfall in the world; the water does not flow over the top like most waterfalls, but rather issues from a cave below the cliff s edge. 5. What is a gaucho? Where were they found? A gaucho is a cattle herder of the Pampas Plains in the 19th century, known for their distinct attire and uncouth lifestyle. 6. Where does the Amazon River begin and end? It begins in the Peruvian Andes and ends by emptying into the Atlantic Ocean in Brazil. 7. What ecosystem has the highest density of biodiversity in the world? the Amazon Rainforest 8. Give a brief general history of Latin America. Before the arrival of European explorers, indigenous peoples such as the Aztec, Incan, and Maya Empires ruled the area. The Spanish and other Europeans arrived in the 15th century, and conquered the indigenous peoples, ruling for the next 500 years. In the 19th century, many Latin American countries fought for and gained independence from Spain and the other nations, and most were independent countries by The next hundred years or so were fraught with civil wars, corruption, revolts, and troubled economies, from which most countries are just beginning to recover. 9. Why is the history and culture of Brazil, Suriname, and the Guianas different from the rest of South America? They were not Spanish colonies like most of the rest of Latin America, but were settled by the Portuguese (Brazil), English, Dutch, and French. These countries are populated by many diverse ethnicities, and Roman Catholicism is not as prevalent here as in other South American countries. 16 Unit 3: Central & South America

2 10. What was the largest civilization in the pre-columbian Americas? the Inca Empire 11. Where were they located? the Peruvian Andes 12. Describe the hollow continent effect. This is when most of a population is spread out along the coasts of a continent, due to inhospitable or uninhabitable conditions in the inner areas of the land. 13. What is the most prevalent religion of South America? What other religions are practiced? Roman Catholicism is the most prevalent; Hinduism, voodoo, Protestantism, and various indigenous pagan religions are also practiced. 14. What is syncretism? Give an example of it in South America. Syncretism is the blending of two religions; an image of the Virgin Mary is sometimes worshipped as a pagan goddess. (p. 29) 15. Where is the hurricane belt? It follows the Gulf Stream and trade winds in the Atlantic Ocean through the Caribbean Sea and into the Gulf of Mexico. 16. Which country gained its independence by means of a slave revolt? Haiti 17. Which Latin American country has had a Communist government since 1959, established by Fidel Castro?_ Cuba 18. Where is most of the population of South America concentrated? Most of the population is concentrated on the coasts of the continent, especially the Brazilian cities of Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro; nearly half of the population of SA lives in Brazil. 19. What is the Ring of Fire? The Ring of is a horseshoe-shaped ring of mountains and volcanoes on the edges of the Pacific Ocean. Unit 3: Central & South America 17

3 Capitals: List the capital of each country. a., Nassau Bahamas b., Havana Cuba c., Port-au-Prince Haiti d., Santo Domingo Dominican Republic e., San Juan Puerto Rico f., Kingston Jamaica g., Belmopan Belize h., Guatemala City Guatemala i., San Salvador El Salvador j., Tegucigalpa Honduras k., Managua Nicaragua l., San José Costa Rica m., Panama City Panama n., Caracas Venezuela o., Bogotá Colombia p., Quito Ecuador q., Lima Peru r., La Paz Bolivia s., Santiago Chile t., Buenos Aires Argentina u., Asunción Paraguay v., Montevideo Uruguay w., Georgetown Guyana x., Paramaribo Suriname y., Cayenne French Guiana z., Brasília Brazil Map activity: On the following page, locate and label the following: Tierra del Fuego Patagonia Argentina Lake Maracaibo Guiana Highlands Colombia Pampas Plains Strait of Magellan Paraguay Chile Amazon Rainforest Suriname Angel Falls Atlantic Ocean Ecuador Andes Mountains Uruguay Lake Titicaca Guyana Pacific Ocean French Guiana Rio Orinoco Venezuela Atacama Desert Rio Paraná Peru Brazilian Highlands Brazil Amazon River Bolivia Rio de la Plata Drake Passage Cape Horn 18 Unit 3: Central & South America

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5 Map activity: On the following page, locate and label the following: Atlantic Ocean Costa Rica Lesser Antilles Puerto Rico Panama Canal Nicaragua Panama Pacific Ocean Bahamas Caribbean Sea El Salvador Honduras Dominican Republic Haiti Guatemala Greater Antilles Jamaica Cuba Lake Nicaragua Robinson Map Project: On a blank Robinson map, draw North and South America, and label the following: Pacific Ocean Atlantic Ocean Arctic Ocean Rocky Mountains Andes Mountains Tropic of Cancer Equator Tropic of Capricorn Arctic Circle Prime Meridian Caribbean Sea Amazon River Cape Horn Strait of Magellan 20 Unit 3: Central & South America

6 Mexico U.S. South America Unit 3: Central & South America 21