UNIT 1 GEOGRAPHY CHALLENGE
© Teachers’ Curriculum Institute1 Unit 1 Geography Challenge
North Africa and the Middle East
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North Africa and the Middle East
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UNIT 1 GEOGRAPHY CHALLENGE
© Teachers’ Curriculum Institute Unit 1 Geography Challenge 2
Geography Skills
Analyze the maps in “Setting the Stage” for Unit 1 in the Student Text. Then answer
the following questions and fill out the map as directed.
1. Locate the continent of Africa on the outline map. Label it. Which continent
lies to the north of Africa? Which continent lies to the northeast of Africa?
2. Locate the Nile River and label it on your map. Into which body of water does
the Nile River flow?
3. Locate the Nile River valley. Shade and label it on your map.
4. What is the Fertile Crescent?
Locate the Fertile Crescent on your map. Shade and label it. Which river(s)
runs through the Fertile Crescent?
5. Label the body of water off the west coasts of Europe and Africa. Also label the
bodies of water off the east and north coasts of Africa.
6. Check the map in the Unit 1 “Setting the Stage” in the Student Text to find an
early human fossil discovery that was made in the Great Rift Valley. On your
outline map, use an X to mark the location of that discovery.
7. Label the Sahara and the Arabian Desert on your map. Then circle the following
features: Syrian Desert, Nubian Desert, Libyan Desert.
8. Most of the land of North Africa and the Middle East is desert. How did this
affect the settlement of early people?
UNIT 1 GEOGRAPHY CHALLENGE
© Teachers’ Curriculum Institute3 Unit 1 Geography Challenge
Critical Thinking
Answer the following questions in complete sentences.
9. Considering the geographical physical features, why do you think early hu-
mans migrated eastward to the Fertile Crescent, rather than north to Europe?
10. One region in the Middle East is called Mesopotamia. This name means “the
land between the rivers.” Where do you think this region lies?
11. The Fertile Crescent was made up mostly of grassy plains. While this area was
good for farming, it lacked resources such as stone, wood, and metal. What
hardships might these shortages have caused for the people who lived there?
12. Why did most early civilizations develop near a water supply?
PREVIEW
© Teachers’ Curriculum Institute Investigating the Past 4
INTERACTIVE STUDENT NOTEBOOK
How do social scientists interpret the past?
Investigating the Past
PREVIEW
READING NOTES
In the space below, quickly sketch one object that you currently own and that you
think someone might find 20,000 years from now.
Suppose that you are a social scientist living 20,000 years from now. You have just
discovered the object above. What might the object tell you about the person who
left it behind? Write your thoughts in a short paragraph below.
Social Studies Vocabulary
As you complete the Reading Notes, use these terms in your answers.
archaeologist geographer prehistoric
historian artifact ritual
INTERACTIVE STUDENT NOTEBOOK
© Teachers’ Curriculum Institute5 Investigating the Past
1. Complete the matrix below to compare three types of social scientists.
Archaeologists Historians Geographers
What do
they do?
What questions
do they ask?
Symbol for
their work
2. In a complete sentence, answer the following question: How are social
scientists like detectives?
1. List three things social scientists can learn from cave paintings.
2. Sketch and label two artifacts that have been found in caves.
Section 1
Section 2
© Teachers’ Curriculum Institute Investigating the Past 6
INTERACTIVE STUDENT NOTEBOOK
1. Before reading, label three details in the
image that may offer clues about why the
artist created this painting.
2. Write a hypothesis stating why you think
the artist created this painting.
3. Read Section 3. Label any additional
important items in the image.
4. Why do social scientists think this painting
was created?
1. Before reading, label two details in the
image that may offer clues about why the
artist created this painting.
2. Write a hypothesis stating why you think
the artist created this painting.
3. Read Section 4. Label any additional
important items in the image.
4. Why do social scientists think this painting
was created?
Section 3
Section 4
© Teachers’ Curriculum Institute
INTERACTIVE STUDENT NOTEBOOK
7 Investigating the Past
1. Before reading, label three details in the
image that may offer clues about why the
artist created this painting.
2. Write a hypothesis stating why you think
the artist created this painting.
3. Read Section 5. Label any additional
important items in the image.
4. Why do social scientists think this painting
was created?
1. Before reading, label two details in the
image that may offer clues about why the
artist created this tool.
2. Write a hypothesis stating why you think
the artist created this tool.
3. Read Section 6. Label any additional
important items in the image.
4. Why do social scientists think this tool
was created?
Section 5
Section 6
© Teachers’ Curriculum Institute Investigating the Past 8
INTERACTIVE STUDENT NOTEBOOK
1. Before reading, label two details in the
image that may offer clues about why the
artist created this sculpture.
2. Write a hypothesis stating why you think
the artist created this sculpture.
3. Read Section 7. Label any additional
important items in the image.
4. Why do social scientists think this sculpture
was created?
1. Before reading, label two details in the
image that may offer clues about why the
artist created these tools.
2. Write a hypothesis stating what you think
the artist did with these tools.
3. Read Section 8. Label any additional
important items in the image
4. What do social scientists think these tools
were used for?
Section 7
Section 8
INTERACTIVE STUDENT NOTEBOOK
© Teachers’ Curriculum Institute9 Investigating the Past
PROCESSING
Social scientists learn about the past by asking questions and conducting inquiries.
You can be a “history detective” too!
What is something that you wonder about the past? You might wonder why
an event happened or how something got to be the way it is today. Write your
question below.
My compelling question:
Now plan an inquiry to answer your question.
• Think of one specific question each of the social scientists below might ask.
These questions should help answer your bigger, compelling question.
• Brainstorm sources where you could find information to answer these
supporting questions.
Supporting Questions Sources of Information
Archaeologist
Historian
Geographer