Introduction to the Geography of Africa: A People First Google Earth Lesson

The presentation can be viewed here

The lesson below can be printed or viewed in pdf format here

Objective:

The goal of this resource is to activate students’ knowledge by providing an experiential understanding of select concepts in the physical geography of Africa and by centering the lives of people. The presentation uses an inquiry-based approach to probe key understandings of the ways geography shapes human activity. The Google Earth presentation was designed to address the types of questions that can be asked about concepts in the physical geography of Africa with the goal of building curiosity.

Ways to use this resource:

Teachers can use this resource:

as a teacher-driven, interactive presentation (see teacher notes); or
as a tool for independent student inquiry on key concepts in the unit (see student information organizer)

The resource can be used as a brief introduction to the land, or as a more extensive resource that engages students in research.

Concepts:

Climate, weather, ecoregion, rainfall, precipitation, rainforest, tributary, savanna, arid, steppe, semi-arid, Sahel, desert, oasis, highland, plateau, Mediterranean climate, Swahili coastal climate, Ethiopian highland, altitude, elevation.

Student Information Organizer

Hand this out to students as you begin the presentation.

Student Tasks	Student Notes
What can a satellite picture tell you about a continent’s climate?Carefully look at the colors and textures. How many climate zones can you identify?
What is the difference between climate and weather? You are here viewing the town of Ain Sefra, in Algeria, which is known as the “gateway of the desert” when coming from the North. As you can see from the pictures, in 2016 and in 2018 it snowed in Ain Sefra. Snow is a type of rainfall. So, from this example, what do you conclude about the difference between climate and weather? Learn more: Read more about snowfall in Ain Sefra: https://www.cnn.com/2018/01/09/africa/sahara-snow-trnd/index.html
Can you identify 6 of Africa’s climate zones based on this map of annual average rainfall? Circle 6 climate zones on this map.
Climate zones are ecoregions.What is an ecoregion?
Ecoregions and Examples
How might altitude affect people’s athletic performance?Here you are viewing the capital city of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa. It is the 5th highest capital in the world and located in the Ethiopian Highlands which are a plateau (a large, elevated, flat surface) that forms the largest contiguous elevated area in Africa. This is why the Ethiopian Highlands are often called the “Roof of Africa”. Two out of the top three male marathon runners in the world are Ethiopian (2020). Pictured here is marathon champion Kenenisa Bekele. How might altitude affect his performance?
Rainforest ecoregion: Banks of the Congo River (Democratic Republic of Congo)The rainforest ecoregion is home to the Congo river basin, the second longest river in Africa, where many other rivers (tributaries) flow into. How is the river a resource to people in the rainforest ecoregion? Read more: The main road through the heart of Africa is the Congo river. On the Congo, a floating marketplace for a nation.
Savanna grassland ecoregion: Baobab tree in Western MadagascarThe savanna is a grassland area that has fewer trees than the rainforest region. The Baobab is an important tree that can be found throughout savanna ecoregions, including the island of Madagascar. How is the Baobab tree a resource for people in the savanna region? How do people in the savanna region of Madagascar use the Baobab tree? Read more about Baobab’s in the savanna: Tree of life: Giant Baobab turned into living water tank in Madagascar Baobabs, Nature’s Watertanks.
Semi-arid ecoregion: The Great Mosque of Djenne in MaliThe Sahel ecoregion is characterized by low average annual rainfall, and fewer trees and grasslands. This is why it is semi-arid. Here, you see the town of Djenne in modern day Mali. The Great Mosque is the center of life and prayer in Djenne. How is this mosque an example of a building that draws from semi-arid region resources? Learn more here: Djenne
Desert ecoregions: Date Palm and its ImportanceThis is the park of Lala Fatna in Algeria. What are these trees? In what ways could they be of importance to people? Learn more: Learn how dates are cultivated in Morocco (video) Dates: the stick history of a Sweet Fruit

Teacher Presentation

Use these notes to support your presentation to students:

Student Tasks/Questions	Teacher Notes
Foundational knowledge
What can a satellite picture tell you about a continent’s climate?Carefully look at the colors and textures. How many climate zones can you identify?	Encourage students to carefully observe the changing colors and textures of the satellite image of Africa, noticing the gradual change in patterns while zooming in. Ask students to predict the number of climate zones.
What is the difference between climate and weather? You are here viewing the town of Ain Sefra, in Algeria, which is known as the “gateway of the desert” when coming from the North. As you can see from the pictures, in 2016 and in 2018 it snowed in Ain Sefra. Snow is a type of rainfall. So, from this example, what do you conclude about the difference between climate and weather? Learn more: Read more about snowfall in Ain Sefra: https://www.cnn.com/2018/01/09/africa/sahara-snow-trnd/index.html	Tell students you are visiting the town of Ain Sefra in Algeria, in the Sahara desert, which has a hot and dry climate. Rain sometimes does not fall for several years in a desert. Introduce the term precipitation. A desert climate means very low and infrequent precipitation. However, even though the climate is desertic, the weather can vary. The pictures of Ain Sefra display evidence that snow can fall in the Sahara. View the pictures of the snowfall there in 2016 and 2018.
Can you identify 6 of Africa’s climate zones based on this map of annual average rainfall? Circle 6 climate zones on this map.	Explain that there are many variations in average annual rainfall that affect climate and create climate zones. Clarify averageand precipitation as needed.
Climate zones are ecoregions.What is an ecoregion?	Introduce key vocabulary by showing the “Major Climate Zones of Africa” map: rainforest, grasslands, Sahel semi-arid, desert, highland, and humid subtropical climate. Introduce ecoregion by explaining that climate shapes the ways humans live in and interact with their land. The concept of ecoregion goes beyond the physical dimension of geography and helps us understand human-nature interactions. Each slide after this one showcases a place, plant, object, or building, as one example that instantiates interaction of humans with their geographies in their specific ecoregion.
Ecoregions and Examples
How might altitude affect people’s athletic performance?Here you are viewing the capital city of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa. It is the 5th highest capital in the world and located in the Ethiopian Highlands which are a plateau (a large, flat surface) that forms the largest contiguous elevated area in Africa. This is why the Ethiopian Highlands are often called the “Roof of Africa”. Two out of the top three male marathon runners in the world are Ethiopian (2020). Pictured here is marathon champion Kenenisa Bekele. How might altitude affect his performance?	This is an opportunity for you to introduce the vocabulary words: altitude, plateau, highland, elevation. The presentation shows an area on Mount Dertu, an elevated point in Addis Ababa. Students interested in athletics will be curious about the top marathon runners and how high-altitude training may cause better performance – not because of lower levels of oxygen, as is commonly understood but because the air pressure (barometric pressure) is denser at ocean level. It is important to explain here that altitude is not the only factor, or even the most important factor, in explaining Ethiopian’s good running performance. Other crucial factors are: motivation, culture (running has been a common interest in Ethiopia since the 1960 Olympics when Abebe Bikila won the marathon), diet, among many others. This is why the core question here includes the modal verb “might”. How might altitude affect athletic performance?See also: Why Ethiopian success is about more than poverty and altitude (Guardian article). A medical journal’s discussion of this topic
Rainforest ecoregion: Banks of the Ubangi River (Democratic Republic of Congo)The rainforest ecoregion is home to the Congo river basin, the second longest river in Africa, into which flow many other rivers (tributaries). The Ubangi river is a main right-bank tributary to the Congo. How could the river be a resource to people in the rainforest ecoregion? Read more: The main road through the heart of Africa is the Congo river. On the Congo, a floating marketplace for a nation.	Describe the dense and resource-rich rainforest area and the importance of the Congo basin and river, with all of its tributaries. When students view the Congo river photos, point out how the river serves as a vital “highway” for people living in this area. Floating markets are common. The river is a main transportation artery, making it easy to connect people and goods instead of having to go through the rainforest.
Savanna grassland ecoregion: Baobab tree in Western MadagascarThe savanna is a grassland area that has fewer trees than the rainforest region. The Baobab is an important tree that can be found throughout savanna ecoregions, including the island of Madagascar. How is the Baobab tree a resource for people in the savanna region? How do people in the savanna region of Madagascar use the Baobab tree? Read more about Baobab’s in the savanna: Tree of life: Giant Baobab turned into living water tank in Madagascar Baobabs, Nature’s Watertanks.	Savannas are characterized by large expanse of grasslands and sparse trees. One very important tree found in the savanna is the Baobab. Precipitation in the savanna is between 700 and 1500 mm/year, which means that preserving water resources is very important for people living in these areas. The Baobab is like a water tank as it can store up to 14,000 liters of water in its hollowed trunk. In Madagascar, Baobabs each have a name and are passed down from generation to generation.
Semi-arid ecoregion: The Great Mosque of Djenne in MaliThe Sahel ecoregion is characterized by low average annual rainfall, and fewer trees and grasslands. This is why it is semi-arid. Here, you see the town of Djenne in modern day Mali. The Great Mosque is the center of life and prayer in Djenne. How is this mosque an example of a building that draws from semi-arid region resources? Learn more here: Djenne	Explain that this architecture is made of sun-dried mud bricks, a very typical style of architecture along the sahelian belt, stretching across Africa from Senegal to Sudan. This style is called Sudano-Sahelian architecture. This style is functional within the ecoregion of the Sahel; it draws on local resources (earth, alluvial clay), mud bricks, terracotta lids on the roof to let fresh air in and the heat escape, and bundled Rodier Palm scaffolding (see the picture of the Rodier Palm) to strengthen the structure. It would be very difficult to build with wood in this area because of the scarcity of trees. The bundled palm rods are therefore very inventive.
Desert ecoregions: Date Palm and its ImportanceThis is the park of Lala Fatna in Algeria. What are these trees? In what ways could they be of importance to people? Learn more: Learn how dates are cultivated in Morocco(video) Dates: the stick history of a Sweet Fruit	In Africa, dates are grown throughout the region of the Northern Sahara, in Oases like this one. The date palm tree is specific to desert climates and to oases within the desert because it needs a lot of water (as much as a willow tree), yet cannot tolerate rain. So the moist soil of oases is ideal for its growth.Within Islam, the predominant religion in Northern and West Africa, dates have a special significance. They are typically the first food eaten when the fast is broken at sundown during the Ramadan period. They are sweet, nutritious, and easily digestible.
Swahili coast ecoregion: Lamu Island, KenyaThis is a view of mangrove forests on the island of Lamu, in Kenya, on the long Swahili coast, which stretches from Somalia to Mozambique. Mangroves are trees with roots that arch above and into the water that can be found on tropical coastlines. Lamu is an island on the Swahili coast. Examine the pictures of the buildings from the Swahili coast. Look at the picture of the ceiling of the Swahili house in Lamu, Kenya. How might the environment of the Swahili coast determine how houses were made? Swahili House Museum, Lamu Kenya	Travel here from the Mangrove forest on Lamu island to the town of Lamu where the Swahili House Museum can be found. Ask students to look at the ceiling of the 18th century house on the Zamani project website. Notice how narrow the room is (it spans the length of the bed). The reason for this is that mangrove wood poles were used for the ceiling structure. Ask students: what might be the connection between mangrove forests and Swahili architecture?

To print this lesson, click here.