South America Projects Study the geography of South America by choosing one of the activities below. South American Travel Brochure Explorer s Journal World Cup Geography Create a Playable Board Game Create a Comic Book Adventure South American Country Trading Cards Write and perform a song or rap about South America Newscast Geography PowerPoint Presentation Read on to discover more details for each project.
Travel Brochure Create a travel brochure of the major tourist attractions of South America. Your brochure must contain at least three important destinations related to physical features. Do not just list beaches! Examples of travel possibilities include: the Atacama Desert in Chile, the Amazon Rainforest, the Amazon River, the Andes Mountains, Igazua Falls in Argentina, Machu Picchu in Peru. You will receive a large, rectangular piece of construction paper that you will need to fold into thirds to create a brochure. You may print out pictures or draw them yourself. You may also type the text and glue your paragraphs onto the brochure. Or, you may create the entire brochure with a computer and print it out. Travel Brochure Checklist [ ] At least three important destinations and a short paragraph describing each (3 paragraphs total) [ ] A map with the location of each travel destination labeled [ ] At least three different pictures (one of each destination) [ ] A short paragraph describing the culture of South America as a whole: languages spoken, sports played, dances and music, etc. [ ] A short paragraph describing the climate in the various areas you have chosen so people will know how to pack
Explorer s Journal Pretend you are a space alien living undetected on Earth. You will be traveling to South America for the first time in order to collect information for your home planet. You are required to document the landforms, climates, and the culture and economics of the people you come in contact with via reports that will be sent to the Intergalactic Federation of Explorers. Here are the details of your mission from the IFOE You will research at least three different places (in 3 different counties) of interest related to physical features. Some places of interest to the IFOE include the Atacama Desert in Chile, the Amazon Rainforest, the Amazon River, the Andes Mountains, Igazua Falls in Argentina, and Machu Picchu in Peru. Explorer s Journal Checklist [ ] Four journal entries at a half-page each (hand-written) or ¼ page if typed: three are destination journals and must include the description of each climate and landforms. The remaining journal is your description of South American culture as a whole: languages spoken, sports played, dances and music, economic activity, etc. [ ] A map with the location of each travel destination labeled Measure and record the miles between each trip. Label the physical features you cross during your journey. [ ] One picture from each destination (3 total). These can be printed from the internet, or you may make sketches of your observations.
World Cup Geography Study the geography of South America by learning about the upcoming 2014 FIFA World Cup, and past World Cups. First, locate major capital cities of past World Cup Qualifiers and label them on the map. Then record the mileage between the cities along with any physical features you would cross. Label those as well. Second, label all the 2014 World Cup host cities on the Brazil map, and label the main physical features of Brazil. Third, use the internet to research current stadiums, mascots, and South American football culture in order to answer questions. World Cup Geography Checklist [ ] Capital Cities labeled on the map. [ ] Mileage recorded between these cities. [ ] Physical Features recorded between these cities. [ ] Physical Features labeled on the map. [ ] Host cities in Brazil labeled on the map. [ ] Physical Features of Brazil labeled on the map. [ ] World Cup questions answered.
Create a Playable Board Game Create a playable board game that is set in South America. The board s setting should reflect at least one physical feature from South America, for example, The Amazon Rainforest. Pictures can be printed from the internet or hand-drawn. You could also use the continent, where players would move from country to country, or city to city. You will write game questions on note cards (along with an answer key) to be used with the game. The questions should ask about South America s climates, culture and languages, physical features, governments, major cities and countries, economics, etc. A spinner can be made or dice can be brought in to use with the game. You may draw your own board or you can print one out from the internet. Rules should be written so that your classmates can easily understand them. No yes/no or true/false questions. Game Board Checklist [ ] Game Board that reflects a South American setting [ ] Rule Sheet [ ] At least 25 Question Cards [ ] Answer Key Sheet [ ] Spinner or dice, and game pieces
Create a Comic Book Adventure Create a comic book hero- or yourself- and put that hero into an adventure story told through a graphic novel. The hero s journey should take place somewhere in South America. Some ideas for a setting include the Atacama Desert in Chile, the Amazon Rainforest, the Amazon River, the Andes Mountains, Igazua Falls in Argentina, Machu Picchu in Peru. You will need to research the area or areas you choose in order to write the story. Your story should incorporate the following elements: climate, physical features and landforms, culture of the people (or personified animals) you encounter, and economics of the region. For instance, if coffee is grown in the area you choose to write about, you should draw coffee beans or plants or use them somehow in your story plot. I have blank comic books available. You may use one or you may create your own template. Comic Book Checklist [ ] Comic Book colored in and completed [ ] A story-line that makes sense [ ] Geographical Elements implemented: climate, physical features/landforms, culture/customs, economics
South American Country Trading Cards Create a pack of trading cards dedicated to the countries of South America. You will glue a map (with the capital city labeled) of each country to one side of a 4 x 6 note card. On the other side, you will list that country s stats. You may type, then print and glue this, or it may be hand-written. Use the CIA fact book website to find this information. Statistics include: Country Name Capital City Population Languages Spoken Climate/s Economy Physical Features Countries (13): 1. Brazil 2. Argentina 3. Chile 4. Ecuador 5. Paraguay 6. Bolivia 7. Colombia 8. Peru 9. Venezuela 10. Uruguay 11. Guyana 12. Suriname 13. French Guiana Trading Cards Checklist [ ] 13 country cards [ ] Side A: Title (name of country), map with capital city labeled [ ] Side B: Include all statistics above
Write a Song Write a song or a rap song about South America! If you choose this option, it must be performed in front of the class. You will need to research the geography of South America first. Your lyrics must incorporate the following geographical elements: physical features (at least 3), climates of South America, major economies (at least 3), South American culture, including languages spoken, governments, festivals, etc. Lastly, all lyrics must be school appropriate. Song Checklist [ ] Lyrics typed or neatly hand-written [ ] Geographical Elements implemented: climate, physical features, culture/customs: languages, governments, etc., economics [ ] School appropriate
Newscast Create and present a newscast by summarizing current news articles regarding recent events in South America. Use your best anchor voice to deliver the news to your classmates. You will also create a short PowerPoint of maps that will serve as your background for each news story. Begin by completing the geography sheet. Then, read the four news articles. Take notes and write down what you want to say. This will test your summarization skills as you relay only the main points in your newscast. You will need to add information about the location of the story and to what physical feature it is near. For example which is 50 miles south of the Amazon Rainforest. Copy down your script onto note cards to use during the newscast. Then find a picture of a map that includes the city where each news story takes place. You will have one map per location, so four maps altogether. Copy and paste these maps in a PowerPoint file. You may add arrows and labels if needed. Newscast Checklist [ ] Completed geography sheet [ ] Four summaries written on note cards [ ] Four labeled maps in one PowerPoint File
Geography PowerPoint Create a PowerPoint presentation covering the geographical elements of South America. You should have a title page and at least one slide per element. Elements should include: Physical Features (at least 3) Climates of the various regions Languages Spoken and where Major Economies (at least 3) Largest Cities (include a labeled map) Culture: foods, music, dance, sports, etc. There should be at least one picture or map on each slide. PowerPoint Checklist [ ] Title Slide [ ] Includes the geographical elements in the above list [ ] At least one picture or map per page [ ] Largest Cities slide includes a labeled map