Skill: Ecosystems
Essential Element 3: Standard 8
The Arctic Tundra
Introducing the Map
ANSWER KEY
Monday
1. A cold, dry land region that
borders the Arctic Ocean
2. Alaska, Canada, Greenland
(Denmark), Finland, Norway,
Sweden, and Russia
Tuesday
1. Winters are long and cold;
summers are short and cool.
2. caribou
Wednesday
1. polar bears, seals, and
walruses
2. Small, sturdy plants like
lichens and mosses can grow;
during the short summers
Thursday
1. Asia, Europe, and North
America
2. Greenland
Define a biome and an ecosystem for students. Talk about different
biomes in the world such as grasslands, deserts, and tropical rainforests.
Another biome that students may not be as familiar with is the Arctic
tundra. Teach students that tundra is a cold, dry region where trees
cannot grow. This region lies on top of a layer of ice that never melts,
called permafrost. The tundra is covered by snow more than half the
year. Mosses, lichens, grasses, and low shrubs, however, grow for a few
short months. Many kinds of animals live in the Arctic such as caribou
and snowy owl. Names of more plants and animals are listed on
the map.
Show students the polar projection map of the Arctic. Show students the
Arctic region on the classroom globe so they are able to see and compare
the area mapped. Discuss the areas that make up the Arctic region. Tell
students the Arctic is the cold region around the North Pole. It includes
the Arctic Ocean, the northern parts of the continents of Asia, North
America, and Europe. The Arctic tundra is part of this geographic
regIon.
Read the caption that names some of the plants and animals that make
their home on the tundra of the Arctic region. Also, share with students
that a number of peoples make their home in the Arctic. The Inuit are
the most widespread Arctic people. They live in parts of Alaska, Canada,
Greenland, and Siberia. You may wish to extend the lesson to research
other culture groups that make their homes in the Arctic region.
Introducing Vocabulary
Arctic tundra a cold, dry region near the Arctic Ocean where no
Friday
1. It shows the area around the
North or South Poles.
2. North Pole
Challenge
1. c
biome a large area or environment
that shares the same general
climate of temperature and rainfall. Different biomes support
different types of plants and animals.
ecosystem a community
of animals and plants, interacting with
their environment
2. d
3. a
4. b
106
trees grow
used for mapping hemispheres instead of the
whole Earth; shows accurate distance and direction, but shape
and size of area is distorted toward the edges
polar proiection
EMC 3714 • Daily Geography
Practice, Grade 5
©2004
by Evan-Moor Corp.