October 2003 “FOR THE Teacher’s Guide INCREASE AND Vol. 3 No. 2 DIFFUSION OF GEOGRAPHIC KNOWLEDGE.” ™ Dear Teacher: The first World Series game was played a hundred years ago. “Play Ball!” uses baseball to teach kids about U.S. history. An extension activity in the teacher’s guide will help students learn how baseball has changed our language. One of the biggest changes of all time happened in 1492. “Map Mysteries” discusses how Columbus used maps to plan his famous voyage. Students will read how an error on a map led to the naming of North and South America. Names conjure up all kinds of images. The word “spider,” for instance, makes many people’s skin crawl. In “Spiders: Weaving Wonders,” students will discover that most spiders are not harmful at all. In fact, they are beneficial. Two bonus posters will expand students’ horizons. “Be the Creature” invites students to join the Kratt brothers as they learn about how some animals live. “America From Space” gives students the chance to look at the United States from a unique perspective. Students will get a better-than-bird’s-eye view of some of our most famous landmarks. Sincerely yours, Francis Downey, Executive Editor NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC EXPLORER Answer Key Issue at a Glance STUDENT EDITION Curriculum Connections L Teaching ing Literacy Skills Eye to Eye Page 24 Unit T Topics 1. leaf insect 3. lion Reading Writ Science Soc. Studies Math 2. moth 4. seahorse Map L Synthesizing information Mysteries ■■ ■ L Reading a map pp. 4–9 T Exploration TEACHER’S GUIDE T Columbus Batter Up Page 5 L Reading for information At bats: 397 Runs: 55 Hits: 128 ■■■ Spiders T Characteristics of organisms Doubles: 20 Triples: 5 Homers: 29 pp. 10–15 T Organisms and their RBIs: 55 Team average: .320 environments Review Page 8 L Reading for information L Developing vocabulary Across: 3. arachnid, 4. ist, 6. cartographer, ■■ ■■ Play Ball! T U.S. history 9. Vespucci, 10. prey, 11. webs, pp. 16–21 T Baseball 12. Robinson, 13. Red Sox, 15. fluid. Down: 1. eight, 2. Pinta, 5. jumping, 7. Asia, 8. globe, 10. pastime, 14. Spain. Map PAGES 4–9 Mysteries Vocabulary Write on the board the following phonetic spellings. ■ When Columbus landed, he knew right away Challenge students to identify, define, and spell that he had discovered a “new world.” each word. (False. He was sure he had landed in Asia.) ■ KAR uh vanz (caravans) ■ The Americas were named in honor of Amerigo ■ YOUR up (Europe) Vespucci. (True) ■ KON tuh nuhnt (continent) ■ OH shun (ocean) Critical Thinking Questions ■ ih MADJ uh ner ee (imaginary) ■ Main Idea: Which of the following statements best describes the main idea of the article? Before Reading a. In 1492 Columbus sailed across the Atlantic ■ Ask: Do you or your family members use maps? Ocean. Why? Did people use maps as often in the days b. In Columbus’s day, maps were not very of Christopher Columbus? Why or why not? accurate representations of the real world. (Correct) Fast Facts c. Columbus misjudged the distance between ■ Columbus’s ships and crew were small. On his Europe and Asia. first voyage, Columbus’s crew of fewer than 100 ■ Synthesizing Information: How are the maps sailors traveled aboard ships that were only you use today different from the ones about 70 feet long. Columbus used? ■ Columbus brought horses to the New World on his second voyage. Extension Activities ■ Columbus’s arrival point in the New World is ■ Geography: Remind students that North still debated. It is generally believed that he America and South America were named for landed on an island in the Bahamas. He named Amerigo Vespucci. Divide students into five his first landfall San Salvador. groups. Assign each group one of the five other continents. Ask each group to research the ori- Comprehension Check gin of that continent’s name. Have each group Ask students to identify each of the following present its findings to the class. statements as true or false. Have students correct the false statements. ■ Columbus was looking for an unknown conti- Book Link nent. (False. He thought he would reach Asia by Student Atlas of the World sailing across the Atlantic.) (National Geographic, 2001; 128 pages) ■ Prior to Columbus’s voyage, people in Europe traded with Africa, Asia, and Australia. (False. Web Link They did not know about Australia at the time.) ■ Columbus thought Asia was much closer to Discover a world of great resources at Europe than it really is. (True) www.nationalgeographic.com/ngexplorer/ teachers. 2 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC EXPLORER Name: __________________________________________ ExploreNorth and South America Can you find your way around the Americas? Write the letter for each geographic feature in the correct place on the map. A. North America B. South America C. Gulf of Mexico D. Caribbean Sea E. Rocky Mountains F. Mississippi River G. Amazon River H. Andes Mountains I. Appalachian Mountains J. Atlantic Ocean K. Pacific Ocean Copyright © 2003 National Geographic Society. Teachers may make copies of this page to distribute their students. Teachers Copyright © 2003 National Geographic Society. Copyright © 2003 National Geographic Society. Teachers may copy this page to distribute their students. Teachers Copyright © 2003 National Geographic Society. OCTOBER 2003 3 PAGES 10–15 Spiders Vocabulary Comprehension Check ■ Write on the board the words “arachnid” and ■ Do spiders belong to the same family of crea- “arachnologist.”Ask if anybody knows the tures as flies, bees, and ants? (No. Spiders are meaning of “arachnid.” (An arachnid is one of a arachnids. The others are insects.) class of arthropods with two body parts and eight ■ What is the difference between an insect and an legs. Spiders, scorpions, and mites are arachnids.) arachnid? (Insects have three body parts and six Tell students that an arachnologist studies arach- legs; spiders have two body parts and eight legs.) nids and that the word ending “-ist” often means one who studies or does something. Critical Thinking Questions ■ Ask students to identify the roots and meanings ■ Comparing, Analyzing: Repeat the survey you of the following words: pianist, novelist, biolo- did in the Before Reading section. Did the gist, columnist, optometrist, guitarist, chemist, results change? If so, ask students why. psychiatrist, conservationist, and cartoonist. Extension Activities Before Reading ■ Math: Tell students: Each day, a spider can eat its ■ Give each student a small slip of scrap paper. Ask: Do you like spiders—yes or no? Collect stu- own weight in food. Ask: How many quarter- dents’ responses. Then select a student to tally pound hamburgers would a 150-pound person the results. (Note: You will use these results again need to eat to keep up with the spider? ■ at the end of the lesson.) Science: This simple experiment demonstrates how spiders inject liquid enzymes into their prey to turn it into digestible mush. Give each student Fast Facts a sugar cube and an eyedropper. Add a drop of ■ A spider grows by molting—shedding its skele- hot water to the cube. The effect on the cube ton and replacing it with a larger one. When a parallels those on the tissue of a spider’s prey. All spider molts, it is able to regenerate lost legs. that’s left when a spider is done eating is the ■ If you unwound some large spiderwebs, the silk prey’s exoskeleton. would stretch out 300 miles! ■ Frogs, toads, lizards, birds, mice, beetles, wasps, and centipedes prey on spiders. ■ Some kinds of spiders eat other spiders. ■ The largest spider in the world is the giant bird- Web Link eating spider of South America. The female’s body can grow to be 3.5 inches long, and its leg Get caught in some great resources at span can reach 10.5 inches. www.nationalgeographic.com/ ■ How many spider species live on Earth? (There ngexplorer/teachers. are about 37,000 species.) NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC EXPLORER is a publication of the NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC SOCIETY brought to you in cooperation with the INTERNATIONAL PAPER NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC SOCIETY FOUNDATION EDUCATION FOUNDATION 4 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC EXPLORER WRITING WORKSHOP Name: __________________________________________ Pet Project WouldWould a a tarantula tarantula makemake a agood good pet? pet? Use reference books and the link below to learn more about keeping tarantulas as pets. In the YES column, list reasons why a tarantula might make a good pet. In the NO column, list reasons why a tarantula might not make a good pet. Yes No YES NO ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ Think About It! Would a tarantula make a good pet? On the back of this Web Link page, write a paragraph that gives your Click your way to spider resources at opinion. Include at least two facts that