Students are introduced to the physical geography of Canada. They create a geographic passport of the country. Then they identify and compare features of Canada with the United States by creating a map. Finally, students consider how global warming in the Arctic affects the rest of the world.
Students read a brief introduction to Canada’s geography and the lesson objectives. They then respond to a word cloud prompt by sharing what comes to mind when they think about Canada, and post one question they have about the geography of Canada to a class wall to guide their inquiry during the experience.
Teacher MovesIntroduce the focus of the lesson and review the objectives. Facilitate a short discussion to surface students’ prior knowledge about Canada, then collect and, if desired, list students’ geography questions to revisit throughout the lesson. Encourage students to research any questions that remain unanswered by the end of the experience.
Students independently read the online article Canada to build background knowledge about the country’s geography, history, and economy, then answer several poll questions to check their understanding of key facts. Next, they read Canada: Geography and People and use information from the Geography and People and Society sections to complete a “geographic passport” graphic organizer (country name, area, climate, natural hazards, language, population rank, urban population, and ethnic groups). Finally, they post to a class wall describing what they notice about how Canada compares to the United States.
Teacher MovesMonitor students as they read and respond to the polls, clarifying misconceptions about Canadian geography and history as needed. Support students in locating relevant details in Canada: Geography and People to complete the passport organizer accurately. Lead a brief comparison discussion using students’ wall posts, highlighting ideas such as Canada’s larger land area, smaller population, and colder climate. Before moving on, organize students into small groups for the next scene and assign each group either the human geography task or the physical geography task.
In small groups, students are assigned one of two tasks to compare Canada and the United States. For Task 1 (Human Geography), groups explore maps including World Population Density and a language diversity map to compare population density and language diversity in the two countries. For Task 2 (Physical Geography), groups explore the Climate Zones map (zoomed in on the United States and Canada) and the Landforms resource to compare climate zones and major landforms. Each group selects a note taker to upload a screenshot of one of their maps to a shared drawing space and add a title. Then, students review the map from the task they did not originally explore and discuss it within their group. Finally, each student posts to a small-group wall describing similarities and differences they noticed between Canada and the United States.
Teacher MovesEnsure groups understand their assigned task and how to navigate and interpret the online maps. Provide technical guidance on taking and uploading screenshots as needed. Circulate to prompt students to use map evidence when comparing population density, language diversity, climate zones, and landforms. After groups have examined both task areas, facilitate reflection by drawing attention to key patterns students may identify, such as Canada’s lower population density, higher language diversity, colder climate, and shared north–south landform systems with the United States.
Students explore the Arctic Program: Report Card by watching the video, reviewing the highlighted findings, and optionally reading more about specific focus areas. They then write a brief explanation on a class wall describing how global warming in the Arctic could affect the rest of the world, and may add additional questions they have about the topic.
Teacher MovesGuide students to focus on key ideas from the report card, such as changes in sea ice, ocean conditions, and weather patterns. Use students’ wall responses to discuss concrete global impacts of Arctic warming, including threats to wildlife and fisheries, extreme weather events, and sea-level rise affecting coastal communities. Encourage interested students to pursue further research on the Arctic climate system using additional resources from the lesson pack.
Students complete the exit quiz by answering all the questions.
Teacher MovesFacilitate the assessment and use student data to evaluate understanding, address misconceptions, and identify areas for growth.
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