Jenna+Welsh's+Lesson+Plan

The Impact of Geography on History Jennalyn Welsh 10th Grade U.S. History Objective: Students will be introduced to the concept that geography has a major impact on history. This lesson will be reiterated throughout the semester. The final project will be introduced and several examples will be given. NOTE: This lesson consists of a guided tour through Google earth as each of these areas are discussed. This lesson plan accompanies that guided tour. Lesson Plan: Anticipatory Set – Open google earth – zoom into the fall line along the Appalachian Mountains. Begin Tour. Explain what the fall line is - The Fall Line is a low east-facing cliff paralleling the Atlantic coastline from New Jersey to the Carolinas. It separates hard Paleozoic metamorphic rocks of the Appalachian Piedmont to the west from the softer, gently dipping Mesozoic and Tertiary sedimentary rocks of the Coastal Plain. This erosional scarp, the site of many waterfalls, hosted flume- and water-wheel-powered industries in colonial times and thus helped determine the location of such major cities as Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, and Richmond. ([]) - It took a long time for people to get across the fall line (show maps of population density, roads, etc. from 18th century – all are to the right of the fall line) - Major cities were built along the fall line. - As you will see throughout the semester, a lot of our history occurred along the fall line. Geography Impacts History - Examples o Rivers – The Mississippi (Cahokia culture, the Louisiana purchase, the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812) § Civilizations are built near rivers because of what they can provide (trade, irrigation, water, defense) o Mountains – Often result in isolated communities (Ancient Greeks developed City-States as a result of their terrain, East Tennessee was very isolated and different from the rest of the state as a result of the Appalachian mountains) o Coasts – The majority of Native Americans lived along the coast – access to food, trade, good weather, etc. When Europeans first came to the Americas, they came to the coast. Because that’s where the bulk of the Native population was, disease spread quickly. Approximately 95% of the population was killed. o East/West axis of Eurasia = Allowed for easier trade (similar climate across country), wheat grew naturally there, more domesticable animals in Eurasia. o North/South axis of Americas = More difficult to trade, climates very different, hard for different groups to come together to form united countries, corn=staple crop, fewer domesticable animals. Introduction of final project - As we go throughout this semester we will talk about more examples of geography impacting history and you will be reading about some on your own. At the end of the semester you will present something very much like the presentation I just showed you through Google earth. You can choose one of the specific historical phenomena or events that I briefly described and research it in more detail, or pick something else we talk about during the semester, or something else you just find interesting you want to know more about. You will have to include and image overlay like I used a couple of times to illustrate the historical event. Find out exactly what happened and how geography played a major role. You will then create a “tour” in Google earth and teach all of us what you discovered!

ThisThis is just one of the 6 tours I created to show how geography impacts history for this lesson. (You need to have Google earth to view this file) Essentially the students will pick a historical even and give the class a tour explaining how that event was impacted by the surrounding geography. They will use image overlays to give the class a sense of what is going on. [] ThisThis link ^ gives a brief summary of how to make tours.

OneGoogle earth is definitely one of my favorite technology tools I have played with this semester. There is so much you can do, just by fiddling around with it. 360 degree cities is probably my favorite tool in Google Earth that I have found. It allows you to take a virtual, panoramic tour of historical sites right in the classroom and the pictures are great quality!

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