Landforms
This mountain range stretches along the western side of South America and influences climate, transportation, and settlement patterns.
Andes
One of the world's largest river systems in South America that carries huge amounts of freshwater to the Atlantic
Amazon River
The term for removing large areas of forest, often for farming, ranching, or development.
Deforestation
The movement of people from one place to another to live; give the one-word term.
Migration
Name the extremely dry desert located mainly in northern Chile, known as one of the driest places on Earth
Atacama Desert
Name the huge tropical rainforest located mostly in Brazil, noted for its biodiversity and heavy rainfall.
Amazon Rainforest
Define urbanization in one sentence and name one problem it causes in Latin American cities.
Urbanization: People moving from countryside to cities. Challenge: overcrowding, traffic, pollution, or not enough housing
Provide two common reasons people migrate within or from Latin America.
seeking employment; escaping violence or political instability; joining family; better education or healthcare.
Identify the large, flat, fertile grasslands mostly in Argentina and Uruguay that support farming and cattle ranching
Pampas
Describe two roles the Amazon River and its basin play for local communities and ecosystems.
transportation for remote communities; habitat for wildlife; source of freshwater and fish; supports local economies (rubber, Brazil nuts).
Describe one big natural resource found in Latin America and explain how it has shaped the region’s economy.
Oil in countries like Venezuela and Mexico has driven exports and shaped economies; minerals in Peru and Chile support big mining industries.
Explain one social effect of fast urban growth on families or communities in Latin American cities.
Rapid urban growth can strain housing and services. Families may split up as members move to cities for work.
Explain one way the Andes Mountains affect farming for people who live on their slopes?
People build terraces on steep slopes. Terraced farming stops soil from washing away and lets them grow crops like potatoes and quinoa high on the mountains.
Explain how the Amazon Rainforest affects the world’s climate and name one result if large parts of it are lost.
he Amazon stores huge amounts of carbon and helps control rainfall. If large areas are lost, more CO2 goes into the air and rainfall patterns can change, which may cause droughts
Explain how cutting down forests (deforestation) can make soil worse and name one economic result that can happen downstream.
Deforestation removes plant cover that protects soil. Without roots and leaf litter, soil erodes and loses nutrients, so farms produce less. Economic consequence: lower crop yields and lost incomes for farmers downstream.
Compare moving inside a country (rural to urban) with moving to another country from Latin America. Include one push factor and one pull factor for each type of movement.
Internal migration (rural → urban): Push — few jobs or failing farms; Pull — city jobs and schools. International migration: Push — violence or extreme poverty; Pull — higher wages or family already living abroad.
Compare how height (elevation) in the Andes makes different climate zones and give one human activity for one zone.
Lower elevations are warm and good for tropical crops and forests; middle elevations are milder and good for coffee and fruit; high elevations are cold and used for grazing llamas or growing hardy tubers.
Look at the trade-offs between using the Amazon for money-making activities (like logging or mining) and protecting its biodiversity. Give two different effects of those choices.
using the forest for logging or mining creates jobs and money but destroys habitats and lowers ecosystem services (like clean water and carbon storage). Conserving the forest protects biodiversity and climate benefits but can limit short-term local income. Both choices affect local people, wildlife, and long-term climate.
Consider how economic inequality in Latin America can be connected to who controls natural resources, and name one policy that might lower inequality.
When a few people or companies control valuable resources, most people do not benefit and inequality grows. Policy approach: use progressive taxes or laws that require resource revenues to be invested in education and roads to help more communities.
Come up with a program a city government could use to help new migrants fit in and reduce economic inequality.
Small-Business Start-Up Fund + Training, Housing Support & Legal Aid Hub, Community Integration & Mentorship Program