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4th grade · Social Studies · Unit 1 of 9

Geography of the Americas

Mountains, rivers, climates and resources

What your child practices

The landforms, bodies of water, climate zones and resources of the Western Hemisphere (the Andes, Rockies, Amazon, Great Lakes and Panama Canal), kinds of maps, and how the land shapes where people live and work.

Arizona Academic Standards learning standard: 4.G1.1 · maps of the Americas and their physical features

How we explain it

Children can open this short lesson before they practice.

  1. The Western Hemisphere is North and South America.
  2. Big features: the Andes and Rockies, the Amazon rainforest and River, and the Panama Canal.
  3. A political map shows countries and borders. A physical map shows landforms.

Example: What is the largest rainforest in the world? It is in South America. It is named after a great river. Answer: the Amazon rainforest

Geography of the Americas in Arizona

In the Arizona Academic Standards, this is unit 1 of 9 in 4th grade Social Studies, before Civilizations of the Americas.

Gradelings describes a child's practice on this unit as Beginning, Approaching, Meeting or Exceeding (Four practice steps). That reflects practice, not a report-card mark: the teacher decides the mark.

Source: Arizona Department of Education

Sample questions

A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.

  1. Question 1

    A political map shows…

    • Only rainfall
    • Countries, borders and capitals
    • Only ocean currents
    • Only mountains

  2. Question 2

    Land use means…

    • How people use land, such as farming, mining or cities
    • The age of the land
    • How tall the land is
    • The color of soil

  3. Question 3

    Which sea lies east of Central America and south of Cuba?

    • The Mediterranean Sea
    • The Caribbean Sea
    • The Arctic Ocean
    • The Red Sea

  4. Question 4

    The long mountain range along the west coast of South America is the…

    • Rockies
    • Appalachians
    • Alps
    • Andes

  5. Question 5

    The Atacama Desert in Chile is…

    • A frozen sea
    • A rainforest
    • One of the driest places on Earth
    • A large lake

  6. Question 6

    The Isthmus of Panama is…

    • A mountain in Peru
    • A lake in Canada
    • A narrow strip of land joining North and South America
    • A large island

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