G U I D E
T O
G E O G R A P H Y
C H A L L E N G E
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© Teachers’ Curriculum Institute
Asia
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TCI20 77
100°E
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1,000 miles
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500 1,000 kilometers
Lambert Azimuthal Equal Area Projection
120°E
40°S
140°E
The Political Development of Imperial China 1
G U I D E
T O
G E O G R A P H Y
C H A L L E N G E
Geography Skills
Critical Thinking
Score 1 point for each correct answer. Use the map
on the previous page to check shading and labeling.
Questions may have more than one correct
answer. Score 1 to 3 points for each reasonable
answer, depending on the strength of students’
geographic reasoning. Possible answers are given
here.
1. The Sea of Japan (East Sea) lies farthest north.
2. Students should label the Taklimakan Desert
and the Gobi Desert.
3. Traders would have had to cross the Gobi
Desert, the Taklimakan Desert, and part of the
Tian Shan mountains.
4. Check students’ map for sea route to India. The
compass allowed the Chinese to travel even
when the sun and the stars were not visible.
Thus, they could reach their destinations more
quickly and accurately.
5. The northern border of China is not mountainous, as are its western and southwestern
borders. Its eastern border is protected by the
sea. China was open to attack from the north,
which is why the Great Wall of China extends
along this border.
6. Students should label the Huang He and the
Chang Jiang rivers, the North China Plain,
and the Chang Jiang Basins. The land near the
Huang He and Chang Jiang was heavily populated because it was a flat, fertile region. The
rivers provided water and a readily available
transportation route.
7. Students should label the Plateau of Tibet, the
Tian Shan, and the Himalayas. China’s highlands are located in the western part of the
country. These mountains would have to have
been crossed by overland traders. This would
have proven difficult because they are so high
and the climate is very cold. Trade by way of
the sea would have avoided these mountains.
© Teachers’ Curriculum Institute
8. India is much closer to China than is Europe.
In addition, it was easier for people and
ideas to travel between India and China than
between Europe and China. Although overland
travel to India would have required passage
through the Himalayas, the sea route was
much safer. Sea travel to Europe was nearly
impossible, since it required sailing around
Africa. Overland travel was also extremely difficult, since the route was long and required
crossing mountains and deserts.
9. The land to the north of the North China Plain
is desert. People who lived in this region may
have attacked the Chinese to obtain food from
their farms or to gain control of the river.
10.Harsh physical features confined the expansion
of China to the lowlands along the coast and
to the plateau of central China. The mountains
and deserts of surrounding areas prohibited
expansion.
11.The flat, fertile land near the Huang He (Yellow
River) and Chang Jiang (Yangtze River)
allowed people to produce plenty of food. This
meant they sometimes had extra food and had
the free time to produce other goods. The rivers made transporting these goods possible,
which caused trade to flourish. The growth in
trade caused certain areas near the rivers to
attract more and more people, which led to the
growth of cities.
The Political Development of Imperial China 2
G U I D E
T O
G E O G R A P H Y
C H A L L E N G E
Using Scores to Inform Instruction
Geography Skills A score of 4 out of 7 or better
indicates that students have acquired sufficient
geographic information to proceed with the unit.
Critical Thinking A score of 8 out of 16 or
better indicates that students are beginning to
understand the relationships between physical
geography and the different ways in which people
live.
Modifying Instruction
ELL or Learners with Special Education Needs Consider focusing on map-reading questions or
limiting the number of “Critical Thinking” questions.
Students with Weak Map or Critical Thinking
Skills Assign appropriate pages from the Social Studies
Skills Toolkit in the back of the Lesson Masters.
© Teachers’ Curriculum Institute
The Political Development of Imperial China 3