Geography of Central and South America and the Caribbean Islands

  1. On a physical map of the world, use cardinal directions, map scales, key/legend, and title to locate Central America, the Caribbean Sea. On a map of the region, identify important physical features of the region (e.g. Gulf of Mexico, Yucatan Peninsula, the Panama Canal).

  2. Demonstrate knowledge of political geography by locating the current countries and major cities of Central America and the Caribbean Islands on a political map; use knowledge of maps to complement information gained from text about a country or region.

    • Anguilla (U.K.), Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda (U.K.), British Virgin Islands (U.K.), Cayman Islands (U.K.), Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Grenada, Guadeloupe (Fr.), Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Martinique (Fr.), Montserrat (U.K.), Netherlands Antilles (Saint Maarten, Saba, Saint Eustatius, Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao), Nicaragua, Panama, Puerto Rico (U.S.), St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St.-Pierre and Miquelon (Fr.), St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands (U.K.), Virgin Islands (U.S.)

  3. Explain how absolute and relative locations, climate, major physical characteristics and natural resources influenced settlement, population size, and the economies of regions and countries in Central America and the Caribbean Islands.

  4. Describe the culture and way of life of the indigenous populations of the region (e.g., Carib [Antilles and South America], Taino [Cuba, Trinidad, Jamaica, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico], Lenca [Honduras], Miskito [Nicaragua], Huatares and Chorotegas [Costa Rica], Lokono, also known as Arawak [Trinidad and Tobago]).

  5. On a physical map of the world, use cardinal directions, map scales, key/legend, and title to locate South America and the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. On a map of South America, locate important physical features of the region (e.g. Isthmus of Panama, Andes Mountains, Cape Horn, Amazon River, and the southern, northern, eastern, and western regions of South America). Use other kinds of maps (e.g., landform, population, climate) to determine important characteristics of this region.

  6. On a political map of the region, demonstrate map reading skills to distinguish countries, capitals, and other cities of South America and to describe their absolute location (using latitude and longitude coordinates) and relative location (relationship to other countries, cities, or bodies of water); use knowledge of maps to complement information gained from text about a city, country or region.

    • Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Falkland Islands (U.K. territory), French Guiana (Fr.), Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay, Venezuela

  7. Explain how absolute and relative locations, major physical characteristics, climate and natural resources in this region have influenced settlement patterns, population size, and economies in South American countries.