Download South America

South America
A Vast Land
Pages 220-222
Do NOW:
• Make a prediction about what you think
the geography of South America will be
like
– Example: mountainous, flat, dry, hilly, deserts,
etc.
Land Regions
There are 3
• Andes Mountains (West)
• Central Plains (Center)
• Brazillian and Guiana Highlands (East)
*Land regions are very similar to North
America.
Andes Mountains
• Earth’s largest mountain range
• Made up of several ranges called
cordilleras.
– Cordillera= a system of parallel mountain
ranges
Brazilian Highlands
•
•
•
•
Begin in the east
Rounded hills and flat plateaus
Forms the Great Escarpment
Escarpment = steep slope between a
higher surface and a lower one
Guiana Highlands
• Consists of mainly open grasslands and
scattered trees
Central Plains
• Between the two mountain ranges
• Made up of 4 areas
• The Llanos, Gran Chaco, Pampas, and
the Selva
• Pampa = a vast grassland in Argentina
3-2-1
• 3: three land regions in South America
• 2: define cordillera and pampas
• 1: one fact about Andes Mountains
South America
A Range of Climates
Pages 222-224
Do Now
• Open your book and read silently the
section entitled, “A Range of Climates” on
pages 222-224
DRY
(Desert)
• Atacama Desert is one of the driest places
on Earth
Rainy
• El Nino= sudden, heavy rain that causes
flooding
Hot
• Hottest temperatures in the middle of the
continent
• Humidity = the amount of moisture in the
air
Cold
• Only the high elevations of the Andes and
the southernmost point of Tierra del Fuego
are always cold
South America
Waters
Pages 224-225
Rivers
• Amazon River
– The largest river
– Drains an area almost equal to the United
States
– Transportation corridor = a route on which
people and goods move from one place to
another
Lakes
• Lake Titicaca
– Highest navigable lake on the earth
• Lake Maracaibo
– South America’s largest lake
What main transportation
corridor links the interior of
South America with the Atlantic
Coast (where it drains)?
South America
Rich in Resources
Pages 226-227
Farmland
• About 1/3 of land is used for farming
• Has some of the largest farms in the world
• Commercial farms produce beef, coffee,
and grains
Sharecropping
• Landowner gives worker shelter, tools and
seed
• Worker farms land
• Landowner takes part of the crop, plus
enough to cover the cost of worker’s rent
and supplies
• What is left is the worker’s
Manufacturing
• Airplanes, automobiles, and computers
• Raw materials-copper, iron ore, tin
– Used to manufacture
Argentina, Brazil, and Chile are the leading
manufacturers in South America
Factors of Production
• To have successful industries, a country
must have all three resources to produce
goods and services
– Natural- raw materials (fertile soil, gold, etc.)
– Human- workers
– Capital- money, buildings, and machines
needed to run a business
How do the factors of
production influence
economies? (p.227)