Mr. Lovera's Virtual Classroom

Mrs. Brown's BIG Map

Mr. Lovera's BIG Map

Over the next 9 weeks, we will be expoloring the fascinating region of North Africa and the Middle East.

Why is the Middle East important to study? I find there are 3 main reasons.

1. Civilization:  If you like Chik Fil A or the Baltimore Ravens or your job, then you owe this region a debt of gratitude. For the very first civilizations began...

Prior to railroads (and cars, planes and phones) time was determined locally by the sun. With transportation and communication happening so much faster, people recognized they needed to create universal time zones.

For those of you who love watching l...

Latitude lines are horizontal lines (---) that are measured by their distance from the Equator.

Latitude lines help determine climate.

The closer you are to the Equator, the warmer your climate will be.  

The further you are from the Equator, the colder your climate will be.

Below is an update for where we are in class. The Unit Reviews are DUE next Wednesday (10/29).

1. LOST LADS

6. Maps vs Globes

7. Maps vs Globes

8-9. Latitude & Longitude Notes or Global BIG Map

10. Maps vs Globes

11. LOST LADS

12. Factors...

Go to the Documents page to compare your notes to the key. There will be a Warm-Up on latitude & longitude next week. You will be allowed to use your notes.

The International Date Line can be a challenge to understand. See if this beautifully accented women's description helps you understand the IDL bet...

Finding absolute locations on a map can range from easy (Mercator projections) to difficult (Robinson projections) to aggravating (Conic projections). Mercator lines look exactly like a sheet of grid paper in math, making it easier to locate precisely where the lines of latitude and longitude intersect. On a Robinson projection, latitude is exactly the same as it is on a Mercator map. Unfortunately, lines of longitude curve away from the Prime Meridian on a Robinson. Finally, l...

Today we investigated the value of maps and globes. It was decided that although globes are more accurate than maps (they are closer to the same shape as the earth itself), maps are in fact more useful and practical for everday use. Take a moment to review your notes. I linked my notes as well as the Powerpoint used in class below and on the Documents page.

I passed out a 6 page Unit Review in class today. My goal is for students to work on them throughout the quarter, NOT in one sitting. They are NOT due until the end of the 1st Quarter. At this point, students should be able to use what I have taught them to answer the following questions:

6. Maps vs Globes

7. Maps vs Globes

10. Maps vs Globes

11. LOST LADS

12. Factors impacting climate

17-18. Mr. World

19. Maps vs Globes

20. Map...

We learned about the 8 essential elements or parts ALL good maps need. They are LOST LADS:

Key, Compass, Scale, Title, Labels, Author, Date & Symbols.

Over the course of the year, we will be examining the reasons why different places on earth have different climates. Today, we analyzed the top two factors:

Latitude (distance from the equator)

The distance from the equator affects the climate of a place. At the poles, energy from the sun reaches the Earth's surface at lower angles and passes through a thicker layer of atmosphere than at the equator. This means the climate is coo...

2nd Period

Avgerage 15.9/20 (79.5%)

Median 16/20 (80%)

Hi 20/20

3rd Period

Avgerage 15.9/20 (79.5%)

Median 16.5/20 (83%)

Hi 19/20

4...

There will be a quiz this THURSDAY covering material from:

• 5 Themes of Geography
• Latitude Zones (Mr. World)
  
• Locate the 7 Continents & 5 Oceans
• Disney Earth
  

All of the items in

Now that we have finished watching Disney Earth, we will spend some time analyzing selected climates on earth and how they impact how and where people live. Check out this really cool interactive map created by NSTA.

After taking some time in class to complete our review of  essetial map components (LOST LADS), ol-Mr. World made a return appearance to discuss the Earth's main lines of latitude and longitude and 3 main Latitude Zones. Due to the Earth's 23.5 degree tilt. not all locations on the earth receive the same amount of sun. For instance, places located between the Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn ALWA...

After completing the Pre-Test, we worked in small groups to glue 48 words into groupings. In many cases, there were heated debates as to where certain words belonged (see Nike for Period 3). Check out some of our work below:

3rd Period students organizing their words

We are watching the movie Disney Earth. The purpose is the gain a deeper understanding of how our earth works. For instance, how climates are different depending on where on earth you are located. Or how the tilt of our earth along its revolution around the sun play a big ro...