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Europe BUNDLE
Give your students a solid background in European Geography with the Geography of Europe Bundle.
- 3 Google Slides lessons with note-taking guides: Europe’s Physical Geography, Society and Culture of Europe, Economics and politics of Europe
- 15 Daily Openers with student worksheets
- Activity Packet (print, digital, editable, and answers)
- Intro Diagnostic Activity
- 6 Map Quizzes: Northern, Western, Central, Eastern, Southeastern, Southern and Southwest Europe.
- Unit Project: Standard of Living Country Report Presentation
- Unit Test: regular multiple choice, modified version with fewer choices, answer key and study guide
PLANNING this MINI-UNIT
Europe’s Physical Geography is the first mini-unit or topic taught in the “European Geography” unit. This topic covers European climate zones, coastal erosion, mountain ranges, major seas and rivers.
Pacing
Teachers should plan 3-4 days to teach this unit on a traditional schedule with one-hour class periods. However, for those on a block schedule with 1 1/2 hour classes, teachers should plan for 1-2 days. An effective way to structure this unit includes:
DAY #1
- If you are planning on teaching the entire “Geography of Europe” unit, pass out the Diagnostic Activity (more information below). This is most likely take the majority of a 60 minute class period to first assign, and then review as a class.
- With any extra time, assign an opener from a selection of 5 daily openers (more information below). Teachers can also introduce this mini-unit by assigning all 5 openers prior to starting the lecture
DAY #2
- Choose another opener in the Physical Geography of Europe section.
- There are two pages of lecture notes for this unit. Teachers should plan on teaching the first page of lecture notes on the second day. (see Europe’s Physical Geography Google Slides)
- After the lecture, have students complete the Political Map of Europe page in the print Activity Packet. INSTRUCTIONS: color the map along political lines, using a different color for bordering countries.
DAY #3
- Choose another opener in the Physical Geography of Europe section.
- After reviewing the opener, finish the lecture on Physical Geography of Europe.
- After the lecture, have students complete the physical geography of Europe questions and elevation pages in the print Activity Packet. INSTRUCTIONS: Answer the following questions using a physical map of Europe. Label these places on the physical map and color the elevation.
DAY #4
- Choose another opener in the Physical Geography of Europe section.
- Students will review the theme Human Interaction with the Environment by completing two pages on Europe’s Green New Deal in the Activity Packet.
- Page #1 INSTRUCTIONS: Read excerpts on Deforestation, Offshore Renewable Energy and Renovation Initiatives and highlight key information.
- Page #2 INSTRUCTIONS: Using information from the previous page, create an infographic on Europe’s Green New Deal.
Openers
The “European Geography” unit has 15 openers that review the following topics: the European Union, per capita income, travel advisories, population analysis, UNESCO, physical geography and more. CLICK HERE for more information on openers for the “European Geography” unit.
OPENER TOPICS
Politics and Economics
- CIA Factbook: Belarus
- Magna Carta
- The European Union: Strategic Agenda
- Europe’s Per Capita Income
- Travel Advisory: Serbia
Society and Culture
- Italy’s Population Pyramid
- UNESCO Predictions
- The Highland Games (Scotland)
- The Louvre
- Population Growth in Europe
Physical Geography
- Peninsulas of Europe
- The Danube River
- Europe and Movement
- Switzerland Climograph
- Peat in Ireland
Google Slides
GOOGLE SLIDES: After the opener, begin the 
Google Slides lesson. Students can take notes on paper using the note-taking guide provided with the Google Slides lesson, or they may take notes digitally with the electronic version (also included with the Google Slides).
TEACHING TIPS
⭐️ TEACHER TIP: I post a PDF version of the Google Slides to Google Classroom so that students can review their notes if they are absent. Click “File, Download, PDF” on the Google Slide to do this.
⭐️ TEACHER TIP: Some teachers post Google Slides in their Google Classroom and digital note-taking guides for students to complete as homework.
⭐️TEACHER TIP: When pressed for time, I will edit the note-taking guides to include answers for some boxes or delete boxes and slides entirely. Teachers should feel free to modify the lesson to meet their student’s needs and individual learning targets.
Activities
Note-Taking Guides
This Physical Geography of Europe Note-Taking Guide should be paired with Google Slides (see above). Teachers can walk students through these notes or post lecture notes on their chosen platform and have students record the information. Here is a preview of the print and digital versions of the note-taking guides
Student Worksheets & Activities
There are eleven pages of activities to choose from to enhance any of the Geography of Europe mini-units.
- Political Map
- Latitude and Longitude Practice
- Physical Geography Questions
- Physical Geography Labeling and Elevation Coloring
- Data Analysis: Per Capita Income
- World Bank Data: Student-created special purpose map using mapchart.ent with video tutorial
- Population Analysis France and Spain
- Europe’s Green New Deal Reading
- Europe’s Green New Deal Infographic
- 5 Themes of Geography Paragraph
- Current Event Research
UNIT: Introduction Diagnostic Activity
Helpful Videos
Break up direct instruction by showing a video that reviews concepts they just learned.
Key Terms & Vocabulary
LAND features
- Mid-Atlantic Rift
- Fjord
- Northern European Plains
- Scandinavian Peninsula
- Iberian Peninsula
- Italian Peninsula
- Crimean Peninsula
- Balkan Peninsula
- European Lowlands
- European Central Uplands
- European Western Highlands
- Carpathian Mountains
- Swiss Alps
- Ural Mountains
- Caucasus Mountains
- Pyrenees
- Cantabrian Mountains
WATER features
- Mediterranean Sea
- Balearic Sea
- Ligurian Sea
- Tyrrhenian Sea
- Ionian Sea
- Adriatic Sea
- Aegean Sea
- Norwegian Sea
- North Sea
- Barents Sea
- Baltic Sea
- Rhine River
- Danube River
OTHER
key terms
- Marine West Coast
- Steppe Climate
- Arctic Climate
- Humid Continental Climate
- Mediterranean Climate
- Glacier
- Coastal Erosion
- Dike
- Polder
LEARNING TARGETS
- Students can identify the 5 climate zones in Europe: Marine West Coast, Steppe, Arctic, Humid Continental, Mediterranean.
- Students can explain how European Plates and Iceland’s Mid-Atlantic Rift contribute to shaping Iceland’s physical geography.
- Students can define and identify the following terms: Fjord and Glacier.
- Students can explain how Europe’s Northern Plains are significant for agriculture. .
- Students can explain why Europe is known as the “Peninsula of Peninsulas.”
- Students can explain how coastal erosion impacts Europe’s infrastructure.
- Students can define the following terms: Dike and Polder, and explain how they are examples of Human Interaction with the Environment.
- Students can compare and contrast the Central Uplands and the Western Highlands.
- Students can locate and identify the significance of the following Mountain Ranges: Carpathian, Alps, Ural, Caucases, Pyrenees and the Cantabrians.
- Students can locate the following Seas in the Mediterranean Sea: Balearic, Ligurian, Tyrrhenian, Ionian, Adriatic and Aegean.
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Thank you for stopping by Teacher Bistro. I created this place as a resource for educators who wanted an easy way to find resources. In my first ten years of teaching, I can’t tell you how many hours I spent gathering lesson plans, video guides, and lectures. Hopefully, you have added this site to your bookmarks, and this place can make teaching a little bit easier.