Physical Map of the

United States Lesson PlanRubricI CAN statementsProject Title CardBlank Map Key

US Mainland MapLabeled LegendColor-Coded LegendOcean-colored MapFinal Colored Map

Social Studies Lesson: Opening Week:

I can identify the location: Canada, USA and Mexico Rocky, Appalachian, Sierra Nevada, and Cascade Mts. The Mississippi, Ohio, Missouri, Colorado, Rio Grande and St. Lawrence Rivers The Great Lakes The Great Plains, Central Plains, Gulf Coastal Plains, and the Atlantic Coastal Plains

Explain to the students the importance of knowing where major landforms are located in the United States. (It helps define regions, explains economic patterns, climate, populations, etc.)

Lesson 1 1. Given a blank map of North American, students will create color-coded maps with keys of the above I CAN statements.2. Students will label lightly with a pencil following step-by-step modeling directions by the teacher of:

the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, and the Gulf of Mexico.the Gulf Coastal Plain and Atlantic Coastal PlainFind the Great Salt Lake, and to the south, label the Great BasinLIGHTLY draw a line Appalachian Mts. Then draw arrow symbols to represent the mountains. Do the same for the Rocky Mts., Cascade Mts, and Sierra Nevada.Continue with a pencil, and label the Great Plains and the Central Plains.

he desert areas and Grand CanyonNumber the Rivers (1-6)Put letters on the Great Lakes (A-E) and label the Great Salt Lake (F)HAVE EACH STUDENT DOUBLE CHECK HIS/HER WORK FOR CORRECT LOCATION AND SPELLING OF EACH AREATrace over all pencil marks with an ULTRA FINE sharpie marker. Then, carefully use an eraser and erase all pencil marks so that only the fine blackmarker line is left

Lesson 2 1. Distribute the map key and rubric to all the students.2. Review the rubric requirements.3. Have students double check their maps llow to make any changes .4. o color the map Color the oceans, lakes, and rivers. Be sure the letters and numbers can still be seen (don’t color too darkly) Continue to color each area and label the corresponding area on the key until the map is completely colored 5. Distribute large construction paper . Glue the map and key to the construction paper.

US Physical Map Rubric

Name: ___________________________________________

MAIN MAP: ________Neatly Colored – 5 pts.

________Words are legible – 5 pts.

________Mountains labeled correctly – 4 pts.

________Plains are labeled correctly – 4 pts.

________Oceans are labeled correctly – 3 pts.

________Rivers are labeled correctly – 6 pts.

________Lakes are labeled correctly – 6 pts.

MAP LEGEND:

________Color codes match map correctly – 9 pts.

________Mountains are written correctly – 4 pts.

________Lakes are matched correctly – 6 pts.

________Rivers are matched correctly – 6 pts.

_________ TOTAL POINTS EARNED ( 58 points possible)

A = 58 – 52 pts. B = 51 – 46 pts. C = 45 – 40 pts.

D = 30 – 34 pts. F = 33 pts. or less

I can identify the following locations: Major mountains including… o The Rocky Mountainso The Appalachian Mountainso The Sierra Nevada Mountainso The Cascade Mountains

Major rivers including… o The Mississippi Rivero The Ohio Rivero The Missouri Rivero The Colorado Rivero The Rio Grande Rivero The St. Lawrence River

The Great Salt Lake and the Great Lakes: o Lake Hurono Lake Ontarioo Lake Michigano Lake Erieo Lake Superior

Major plains including… o The Great Plainso The Central Plainso The Gulf Coastal Plainso The Atlantic Coastal Plains

Three main countries in North America… o Canada, United States, and Mexico

Physical Map of the United States

Drawn and Colored by: ____________________________

Physical Map of the United States

Drawn and Colored by: ____________________________

Physical Map of the United States

Drawn and Colored by: ____________________________

Physical Map of the United States

Drawn and Colored by: ____________________________

________ Mountains

__________________________________

__________________________________

__________________________________

__________________________________

_______ Great Plains

_______ Central Plains

_______ Gulf Coastal Plains

_______ Atlantic Coastal Plains

_______ Great Basin

_______ Desert

_______ Grand Canyon

_______ Water

Lakes A _____________________

B _____________________

C _____________________

D _____________________

E _____________________

F _____________________

Rivers 1 _____________________

2 _____________________

3 _____________________

4 _____________________

5 _____________________

6 _____________________

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