Open House Project

For Open House, my class did these projects using tri-fold boards. There are eight teams with 4 people in each team. Each team does a different topic relating to the fifth grade. My team got the topic Social Studies. We had to write about how America was founded. We gave our board the name "America's History Trail." We had two weeks to finish the project. The four members in my team each had a different subtopic to write about for the assigned essay. I wrote about the present America and how it is like. In my essay, I included the climate, geography, and industries of each region. My team met in total of about 10 times. My teacher, Ms.West, gave us 30 minutes everyday in school to do our project. Of course, we had to write our essays at home. Here is the essay:

The United States Regions

By: Royce Yang

Each region in the United States is special and unique for its geography, climate and industries.

The geography of each region is different because of the landforms. For example, in the West, there is the Pacific Ocean and several mountain ranges. The mountain ranges are the Sierra Nevadas and the Rockies and the Coastal Range. In the Southwest of the United States the landscape is an open desert. It is also known for Death Valley, Rio Grande and the Grand Canyon. However in the Great Plains, the geography is different. The Great Plains are covered by flat prairie land. It is used most commonly for grazing and farming. In the Northeast of the country, the land is rocky, mountainous and forested. There are the Appalachian Mountains and the Atlantic Ocean. In the Southeast, there is the Coastal Plain and the Gulf of Mexico. It is bordered by the Mississippi River.

The climate in each of the regions is determined by the landforms and where it is located on the globe. In the West the climate changes because of the many different landforms. For instance, the mountainous regions are cold and snowy. But, the coast is cool and sunny. In the Southwest, the deserts are hot and dry. The do not get water and there is often a drought. Next, in the Great Plains it changes depending on where you are in the region. Close to the “edges” it is hot, or dry, or humid. In the middle it is mild. The Northeast is often cold and has extreme weather such as: droughts, heat waves, floods, and severe storms. In the Southeast it is mild and has a lot of rainfall. The climate varies by the season. In winter the area is cool and mild, but in summer it is hot, humid, and has a lot of rain.

Industry depends on the geography and the climate. For instance, the Pacific Northwest has ranching, farming, and timber because mountains have trees and valleys are perfect for crops. But, the Southwest has corn, wheat, cattle, and sheep. The desert in the Southwest makes it hard to have agriculture. The Great Plains is mostly used for farming because it is just a flat land. In the Midwest, there is corn, oats, and wheat. This is why it has the nickname of “The Nation’s Breadbasket.” The Northeast is famous for many different types of fish, such as lobster because it is right next to the Atlantic Ocean. Like many other regions, the Southeast specializes in farming. In that region, there are cows, pigs, chicken, cotton, and tobacco.

Each region of the United States has geography, climate, and industries in a way where one is not like the other.

Our team was also assigned to do an artifact for our project. But we couldn't figure out how to have teamwork on only one artifact, so we did four artifacts. Actually, we did five artifacts because I accidentally did two. Both of my artifacts were maps of the United States. However, one of my maps was a puzzle. It was pretty hard to make, but I finished it by the last hour. I had to draw on foam. But the funny part was that well... anyone that touches my puzzle will end up with a "green thumb!" Markers on foam was not a good idea... Next time I would use paint to color my map. That way people would end up with a regular thumb. It would improve my artifact a lot.