Download - Department of Arkansas Heritage

Aligns with standards G.8.3.1, G.8.3.2 and G.8.3.3 for
third grade Social Studies. Created 9/15.
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Cover photo by Jonathan Ball.
http://www.arkansasheritage.com
Vocabulary
climate map
physical map
political map
Map that shows information such
as rain and snowfall amounts, temperatures and weather patterns
(1)
Map that shows mountains, rivers, valleys, oceans and other
natural features (2)
Map that shows the boundaries of counties, states and
countries. They often include
cities and areas of water as
well
relative location
characteristic
Site of a place or region
in relation to other places or regions (e.g., northwest, downstream)
A detail belonging to a
person, place, or thing
that helps to identify it
Fun fact: The record
amount of snowfall in a
24 hour period was 24.5
inches in Siloam Springs
in February, 2011. (3)
Conversation
Have you ever been lost? How did you
feel? Would a map have helped?
Have you been to another part of Arkansas? How was it different? How was it the
same?
What kind of maps can you think of?
What are the pros and cons of each
map?
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No map can show every single thing. Some
maps may show weather, some may show
state boundaries, and some may show where
the roller coasters are at Disney World.
school would be a
red square, and so
on. You would then
show what these
symbols mean in a
When making a map, you first have to decide what you want to show. For example, say map legend, a key
you were going to make a map to show peo- that is usually at
ple how to get from your school to your house. the border of a map. The legend is important
for people to understand how to use the map.
You will want to show roads and important
A star may indicate a capital city, a “you are
buildings. What else? Is it important to show
trees? What about stop signs? It all depends here” sign, or an important spot on a map. You
on what is important for what you’re trying to would have to look at the legend to see what
the star means on the map you are looking at!
communicate.
You then have to decide what the scale of
your map will be, or, what the relationship between the space you are showing is to the real
space. The scale may be 1 inch on the map
equals 1 mile in real life. A map that isn’t to
scale can be very confusing.
Once you decide what you want to show, you
have to decide how you want to show it. Maps
make things simple. For example, a building
may be a square on a map instead of the actual building
shape. Maybe you
want
to
show what the buildings
are used for
Fun fact: Arkansas
with color.
represents 1.4% of
A house
the United States in
would be
total land mass. (4)
a blue square, a
People have many tools to make maps. They
can look at images from space, they can measure places, or they can even look at other
maps. A good map is easy to use and is a
great way to give people information.
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Write it out
You can learn a lot about a place by looking at a map. Are there more cities near rivers? Is the
weather generally cooler in one part of the state? Look at the maps in this activity book. Write
3 things you notice about Arkansas from looking at the maps.
1) _______________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
2) ________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
3) ________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Link
Population map, with red having the most people,
and dark green having the least amount of people
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Make a map
Make a map of your classroom. Include things like whiteboards,
teacher’s desk, student desks and computers. If you can, measure
your classroom and draw the map to scale. Each block is a square
inch in the grid below. Include a map title and a compass rose.
Map legend:
1 inch= ______
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Fun fact: People
who make maps
are called
cartographers.
Look at the map to the right. What do you
notice? If you had to draw lines to show different regions in Arkansas, where would you
draw the lines?
Geographers have said there are six geographic regions in Arkansas. This means there
are six areas in the state that share the same
characteristics with each other. Which region
do you live in? Which region would you like to
visit?
Ozark Mountains
The Ozark Mountains are in the northwest
corner of the state. They are from a high, flat
land that was gradually worn away on the
sides by water, wind, or ice. The area is full of
lakes and rivers. The rocky soil makes it not
very good for farming, which means that the
first people who lived there had to work hard
to survive and lived far away from each other. There are also many caves in this region
because of the limestone and dolomite rocks
underneath the ground, which are easily
washed away by water. The streams in this
region are very beautiful, and are popular
places for people to visit.
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Arkansas River Valley
The Arkansas River Valley is the land between
the Ozark and Ouachita Mountains, formed by
the Arkansas River. The river was important for
transportation for the first people who came to
Arkansas, and many of Arkansas’s first cities
are in this region. This region has a few flattopped mountains, such as Mount Nebo, Petit
Jean Mountain and the tallest point in the state,
Mount Magazine. Early settlers cleared much
of the land for farming, and it remains clear
for farmland today.
Ouachita Mountains
Mississippi Alluvial Plain
The Ouachita Mountains are found in the western part of our state. Unlike the Ozarks, the
land between the mountains are very good for
farming. Also, unlike most of the mountains in
the United States, the Ouachitas run west and
east instead of north and south. Twenty-three
water animals are found nowhere on Earth except the Ouachita Mountains (4). This area is
known for its quartz crystals. There are also
naturally hot springs, which early Arkansans
built into bathhouses. These springs are a popular place for people to visit.
This region is also known as the Mississippi Delta. It is a land created by the Mississippi River,
which was important for early Arkansas settlers
because of it’s location near the Mississippi River. It also has good dirt that was good for
farming, but the large amount of mosquitos
and flooding made it difficult place to live. It is
a great area to farm, and the rice, soybeans
and cotton fields are a large part of Arkansas’s economy.
Crowley’s Ridge
West Gulf Coastal Plain
Crowley’s Ridge is an interesting area that is
different from most of eastern Arkansas. It is a
high elevation ridge, sometimes as narrow as a
half mile, sometimes as wide as 12 miles.
When people started to move to Arkansas, this
was a popular spot to live because the land
was not as swampy as the Mississippi Alluvial
Plain and the land did not flood. Crowley’s
Ridge is the smallest of Arkansas’s geographic
regions. (4, 5)
The West Gulf Coastal Plain is an area of land
made of low hills covered in pine trees. The
lowest point in Arkansas is found in the Coastal
Plan. Where the Ouachita River enters Louisiana is 55 feet below sea level. In the late
1800s, people removed most of the trees in
the area, which caused a lot of harm to the environment. Now the trees are back, and people
manage the trees for business. Oil is also found
in this region, which is another important business.
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Border State Song
To the tune of “Twinkle,
Twinkle, Little Star”:
Missouri is on top,
Louisiana's down below,
Oklahoma’s to the left,
Though in the corner
Texas shows,
Tennessee is right,
On top of Mississippi,
The river that separates
makes the border kind
of wiggily,
Six states border Arkansas
And I can name them all!
Games
I Spy
Simon Says...
Play “I Spy” in your
classroom. When a
person gets the answer wrong, respond
with a relative location clue.
“Touch the Ozark Mountains!”
Heads Up
Make notecards with each
of the six geographic reHead – Ozark Mountains
gions of AR. Player 1 blindShoulders – Arkansas River
ly puts the region on his/her
Valley
forehead. Player 2 gives
Knees – Ouachita Mountains
clues about the region, and
Toes – West Gulf Coastal Plain Player 1 must guess what
region is on his/her foreRight eyebrow – Crowley’s
head.
Ridge
Right arm – Mississippi Alluvial Plain
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Mapping Arkansas
Use the workbox to label the appropriate areas in Arkansas. Color each of the geographic
regions.
Arkansas River
Mississippi River
St. Francis River
Arkansas River Valley
Missouri
Tennessee
Crowley’s Ridge
Oklahoma
Texas
Little Rock
Ouachita Mountains
West Gulf Coastal Plain
Louisiana
Ouachita River
White River
Mississippi
Ozark Mountains
Your county
Mississippi Alluvial Valley
Red River
Your town
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Fun fact: You can
get to each Arkansas border
state by going
south.
More resources

Free set of geography posters from the Department of Arkansas Heritage, for download or to order:
http://www.arkansasheritage.com/Learn/dah-educational-resources

Comprehensive information on the 6 geographic regions of Arkansas from the Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission, including text, PowerPoint, posters, and lesson plans, for free at http://
www.naturalheritage.com/Education/ecoregions-natural-divisions-of-arkansas

Excellent book that has several maps of Arkansas: Paradise, Tom. Arkansas: An Illustrated Atlas.
Little Rock: Butler Center, 2010. Print.

Arkansas map scavenger hunt from the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism: http://
www.arkansas.com/!userfiles/kids/Tourism%20lesson%20explore%20ark.pdf

“How to use mental maps to organize information about people, places, and environments in a spatial
context” from National Geographic: http://education.nationalgeographic.com/standards/nationalgeography-standards/2/?ar_a=1

“How to use maps and other geographic representations, geospatial technologies, and spatial thinking to understand and communicate information” from National Geographic:
http://education.nationalgeographic.com/standards/national-geography-standards/1/?ar_a=1

Draw and share a map online: https://www.scribblemaps.com
Sources
Cover photo by Jonathan Ball, “Me on Hawksbill Crag ,” accessed on Flickr August 2015. <https://www.flickr.com/photos/
jball359/5484190371/in/album-72157626163938196/>
1) Climate map: Weisburg, Jenny, and Christopher Daly. "Average Annual Precipitation Arkansas." Western Regional Climate Center. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Sept. 2015.
2) Physical map: "Arkansas." World Maps. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Sept. 2015. <http://www.worldmapsinfo.com/mapimage/
arkansas.jpg>.
3) Shaw, Damon. "Historic Snow In Northwest Arkansas." 4029 TV Weather Blog. 4029 KHBS, 09 Feb. 2011. Web. 02 Sept. 2015.
<https://4029weather.wordpress.com/2011/02/09/historical-snow-in-northwest-arkansas/>.
4) Paradise, Tom. Arkansas: An Illustrated Atlas. Little Rock: Butler Center, 2010. Print.
5) Foti, Thomas L. The Natural Divisions of Arkansas. Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission, 2008. Print. <http://
naturalheritage.com>
Allison Reavis
Education Coordinator
[email protected]
501-324-9346
www.arkansasheritage.com
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