1. Georgia’s Geographic Regions
Use Teacher Notes to activate learning. After completing task, read the compelling questions and quickly explain the questions.
What are the five geographical regions of Georgia?
How is each of the regions unique?

2. Learning Targets I Can:
locate the Blue Ridge, Piedmont, Coastal Plain, Ridge and Valley, and Appalachian Plateau on a map.
compare the regions of Georgia.
locate the Savannah, Flint, and Chattahoochee Rivers on a map.

3. Georgia: Our State
Do a class Word Splash asking students to tell you what they know about Georgia, Troup County, and LaGrange, West Point, or Hogansville.

4. So …. where in the world IS Georgia anyway?
Our Location
So …. where in the world IS Georgia anyway?
Click on map of Georgia to launch Google Earth. Search for Georgia and then LaGrange, Hogansville, or West Point.

5. Look out your window. Is the land around you flat or hilly
Look out your window. Is the land around you flat or hilly? In the distance, can you see tall hills, or maybe even mountains? Depending on where you live, the surface features of Georgia can be quite different. Near the coast, you will see flatlands, In north Georgia, you will see ridges, valleys, and mountains. Nature has provided a wide range of land formations (or landforms, for short) in Georgia.
Read the paragraph making sure students understand vocabulary: surface features, coast, flatlands, ridges, valleys, mountains, nature, and landforms

6. Valley and Ridge Region
Appalachian Plateau
Piedmont Region
Valley and Ridge Region
Coastal Plain Region
Explain to students they will become researchers to find information about their state: Georgia. Explain graphic organizer students will use as they gather information about each of the regions of Georgia. Student copies are located in Teacher Notes. Have students turn and talk about the photographs. How are they similar, how are they different? Debrief as a class by charting the similarities and differences.
Blue Ridge Mountain Region

7. Smallest region in northwest corner of state
Source of coal
Lookout Mountain, Ruby
Falls, Cloudland Canyon ,
part of Appalachian Mountain range
Poor soil for farming
Northeast corner of the state
Beginning of Georgia rivers
Brasstown Bald- highest point in Georgia
Marble production, hardwood forest, farming for vegetables and apples
Waterfalls: Amicalola Falls, Toccoa Falls, Tallulah Gorge
Coolest part of state and receives most precipitation
Located between Appalachian Plateau and Blue Ridge Mountain regions
Site of several battles in Civil War
Forest with fertile valleys
Land for cattle and crops
Known for textiles- Dalton, GA “carpet capital of the world”
Means “foot of the mountain”
Rolling hills with fertile soil
Farming: wheat and soybeans
Georgia red clay and granite rock- Stone Mountain
½ of Georgia population
Capital: Atlanta
Cities: Columbus, Macon, Augusta, and LaGrange
Once known as cotton belt during pre-Civil War
Bordered by fall line
Makes up 3/5 of state
Major agricultural region: onions, peanuts, tobacco, pecans, sweet potatoes
Home to Okefenokee Swamp
Rivers good for boat travel to transport goods to seaport for trade
Small towns and cities with few people
Longer and hotter summers
Model for students how to complete part of the graphic organizer from previous slide use the bullet points from the Appalachian Plateau. This slide does not mention plants or animals. Tell students they will be learning more information on the next slides and will continue to add information to their organizer. Make sure to point out the location of each of the regions using the compass rose and directional words.

8. Appalachian Plateau
The Appalachian Plateau is a mountainous region with many streams flowing through them.  This area also marks the only known source of coal in Georgia. It marks the beginning of the Appalachian trail.
The Appalachian region is located in the northwestern most corner of the state.
It is referred as the Tag corner (because it connects Tennessee, Georgia, and Alabama) and the Cumberland Plateau (because of the broad, flat-topped, 100 mile long Lookout Mountain). The Appalachian Plateau region is a maze of limestone caves, deep canyons, and interesting rock formations. 
A plateau is an area of flat or gently sloping land sitting over neighboring valleys or low-lying areas. 
Read the paragraphs and captions with pictures. Go back to the graphic organizer and add any information. Students should also add information to their organizer.

9. Appalachian Plateau
The Appalachian Plateau is the habitat for many animals such as: the Flying/Tree Squirrels, white-tailed deer, Black Bears, Bobcats, Fox, Raven, Barred Owls, and Speckled Trout.
Read the paragraphs and have students turn and talk about animals they are familiar with. Make sure students understand the word pasture. Have students add to their graphic organizer.
Land here is generally used for hardwood forest and pasture, although a small amount of corn and soybeans are also grown.

10. Appalachian Plateau Let’s Read and Explore!
Read and discuss book. Have students add any additional information to their graphic organizer.

11. Valley and Ridge
The Ridge and Valley region occupies only a small part of the state. The region is made of low open valleys and narrow ridges that run side by side. There are flat farmlands in the valleys that have fields of grain, pastures of cows, and orchards of apples. Most of this region is covered with forests. Very few people live in this area. The Ridge and Valley region was covered with water 400 million years ago. Now, when you visit this region, you can find ancient sea fossils of all kinds.
The region owes its physical features to the erosion of alternating layers of hard and soft sedimentary rock that were folded and faulted during the building of the Appalachians. 
Give students the Valley and Ridge graphic organizer. The concept of a valley and ridge will be clarified at the end of the unit through a video students will watch.

12. Valley and Ridge
The Ridge and Valley region is a great place for bird watchers. Birds include chestnut-sided warbler, worm-eating warbler, red-tailed hawk, cardinals and many other bird species. Butterflies spotted in the Ridge and Valley region are the Aphrodite fritillary and northern metalmark.
Read information about plant and animal life in this region. Have students add information to their graphic organizer.
Mammals that are seen here are the deer, raccoon, opossum, striped bobcats, skunks, and a variety of other animals. Many reptiles and amphibians live here as well including timber rattlesnakes and salamanders.
Plants include eastern hemlock and yellow birch trees, and an endangered herb– the mountain skullcap

13. Valley and Ridge Let’s Read and Explore!
Read and discuss book. Have students add any additional information to their graphic organizer.

14. Blue Ridge Mountains
The Blue Ridge Mountain region is found in northeastern Georgia north of the Piedmont region and east of the Valley and Ridge region. The mountains in this region are part of a larger chain of mountains called the Appalachian Mountains. The highest mountain peak is called Brasstown Bald. Many people like to hike and explore the waterfalls in this region. The Chattahoochee and Savannah Rivers begin in the Blue Ridge Mountains.
The Cherokee Indians lived in these mountains many years ago. Marble and gold are two natural resources found in this region.
Give students graphic organizer. Read information to students and have them jot notes on their graphic organizer.
North Georgia's Amicalola Falls gets its name from the native Cherokee word meaning "tumbling waters." Amicalola is the state's highest waterfall, with a total drop of 729 feet. It is located in Amicalola Falls State Park.

15. Blue Ridge Mountains
Only plants and animals that can survive colder weather and higher winds are found here. (Deer, wild turkey, black bear, birds (with curved beaks to find/eat seeds and short claws to hold on to branches), bats, salamanders, lizards, snakes, frogs, bobcats, gray foxes, beavers, wood chucks, and trout)
Read information about plant and animal life in their region. Have students add information to their graphic organizer.
Oak and hickory forests along with shrub, grasses, and hemlock are found in this region.

16. Blue Ridge Mountains Let’s Read and Explore!
Read and discuss book. Have students add any additional information to their graphic organizer.

17. Piedmont Region
The Piedmont Region  cuts across the central portion of Georgia. The region is between the Appalachian Mountains and the coastal plain. The Piedmont contains a series of rolling hills and occasional isolated mountains such as Pine Mountain. Many of Georgia's most important cities are located in the region including Athens, Atlanta, Augusta, and Macon which makes this region the most populated. LaGrange is also part of this region.
The word Piedmont means “foot of the mountains”. Warm summers and mild winters (very few days of freezing temperatures) are characteristic of this region.
Give students graphic organizer. Read the information, discuss and have students add information to their graphic organizer.

18. Piedmont Region
River otters, opossums, beavers, raccoons, squirrels, deer, birds and birds of prey (owls, hawks, eagles) are found in this region.
Read slide. Have students add information to their graphic organizer.
Plant life includes river birch, sweet gum, and black walnut trees as well as interesting plants such as the cattail.

19. Piedmont Region Let’s Read and Explore!
Read and discuss book. Have students add any additional information to their graphic organizer.

20. Coastal Plain region is divided into 2 parts: Upper and Lower
The Coastal Plain Region cuts across Georgia below the fall line. It is the largest habitat region in Georgia (covers about 60% of the state) and at one time was below sea level. The Coastal Plain landscape is a low, flat region of well-drained soils with some areas of gently rolling hills. Many of Georgia’s rivers that begin in the Appalachian Mountains flow through the Coastal Plain region to the Atlantic Ocean. This region has hot summers and mild winters. The Coastal Plain contains many wetland communities including the Okefenokee Swamp. Much of the current land use is row crop agriculture and managed pine forest. The coastal area is currently experiencing rapid urbanization.
Row Crop Agriculture
Okefenokee Swamp
Give students Coastal Plain graphic organizer. Read the paragraph making sure students understand vocabulary: habitat, sea level, well-drained, poorly drained, wetland, row crop, urbanization. Have students complete part of graphic organizer.
Savannah is the largest city in this region. It is the oldest city in Georgia and at one time served as the capital. Savannah is considered a busy seaport for the Atlantic coast.
Coastal Plain region is divided into 2 parts: Upper and Lower

21. Coastal Plain
Wild hogs, rabbits, deer, snakes, squirrels, turtles, alligators, & pocket gopher (near extinction) are found in this region. Water birds will be found near the coast or near rivers and large lakes/ponds.
Read and discuss slide. Have students add information to their graphic organizer.
Live oak and pine trees, Spanish moss, and a large variety of plants including saw palmetto are found in this region.

22. Coastal Plain Let’s Read and Explore!
Read and discuss books. Have students add any additional information to their graphic organizer.

23. Interactive Fieldtrip: Regions of Georgia
This slide is hyperlinked to GPB TV and an interactive field trip to the geographic regions of Georgia. To navigate the video, click on a region of Georgia. Read the information on the screen. Click More (you may need to scroll down on your screen). This will take you to a short video of that region. Once video is complete, close the video tab. In the bottom right corner, click the up arrow. In the top right corner you should see the next region. Click to watch additional videos.
Vocabulary to discuss prior to watching video.
Appalachian Plateau: border, ecoregion, “mountainous rainforest” drought, coal, sustain
Valley and Ridge: erosion, valleys, fertile, agricultural, humid
Blue Ridge Mountain: elevation
Piedmont: climate, Fall Line, migratory, species, population
Coastal: (no vocabulary)
When completed have students add any last information to their graphic organizers about the regions of Georgia.

24. Show students the compare and contrast bubble map
Show students the compare and contrast bubble map. Explain that they will be working with a partner to compare and contrast two of the regions in Georgia. Put students in partnerships and assign (or let partnerships choose) two regions to compare and contrast. Each student will complete the organizer. Students should think about physical features, plants, animals, and any other information they have gathered on their organizers. Debrief as a class.

25. Georgia Rivers
Give students blank Georgia regions map (see teacher files). Have students label the regions. Model and have students locate and label Atlanta, LaGrange, and, Macon. Tell students they will be using this map to identify the location of three of Georgia’s main rivers: the Chattahoochee River, Flint River, and Savannah River.

26. Chattahoochee River
For centuries, the Chattahoochee River has served residents of this area as a transportation route, an engine for commerce and recreational resource.
Read information and discuss vocabulary (transportation, route, commerce, recreational). Discuss map and location of river. Have students draw and label Chattahoochee River on their map.
Chattahoochee means “river of painted rocks” The Chattahoochee River begins in the Blue Ridge Mountains and flows 430 miles throughout Georgia. The river flows through Atlanta and provides more than 70% of Atlanta drinking water
Eventually, the river joins the Flint River in Southwest Georgia.

27. Chattahoochee River Let’s Read and Explore!
Read and discuss the book. Debrief with class by creating an anchor chart about the Chattahoochee River. Students should give important facts about the river from the book to put on the chart.

28. Savannah River
The Savannah River begins as a stream in the Blue Ridge Mountains. It forms most of the border between South Carolina and Georgia. The river eventually flows into the Atlantic Ocean. Two major cities are located along the River- Savannah and Augusta. In addition to shipping, the Savannah River is a major source of drinking water for Savannah and Augusta.
Read the paragraph. Have students locate and label the Savannah River as well as Savannah and Augusta. Label the Atlantic Ocean. Discuss the importance of the Savannah River and Savannah as a major port on the Atlantic Ocean.

29. Savannah River Let’s Read and Explore!
Read and discuss the book. Debrief with class by creating an anchor chart about the Savannah River. Students should give important facts about the river from the book to put on the chart.

30. Flint River
The Creek name for this river was “Thronateeska”, which meant” flint-picking-up place”. Flint is a hard form of rock that was used for making arrowheads or spear points. It was highly valued by the Creeks.
The Flint River begins at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson Airport with the upper portion of the river flowing through the Georgia Piedmont region.

31. Flint River Let’s Read and Explore!
Read and discuss the book. Debrief with class by creating an anchor chart about the Flint. Students should give important facts about the river from the book to put on the chart.

32. Pass the Paper
With your group, you will have 30 seconds to write or draw everything that you know about the region or river on your paper.
Every group member must participate – angle yourselves so that you can all write at the same time.
The catch is that you cannot write or draw something that is already written!
When I say that time is up, you must pass the paper on to the next group.
We will continue to “Pass the Paper” until each group has seen all of papers.
Read the directions and play the game. Display completed mini charts around room so students can use them as they complete their performance task.

33. Use What You Know
Explain to students that they will be creating a Georgia Regions and Rivers flipbook. Students will use all of the information they have gathered from their graphic organizers, books, and can even complete additional research using websites to complete the flipbook. The template uses PowerPoint to create the flipbook but students (or teacher) can select a different technology resource to complete the task. Students should share their flipbooks with a partner to revise and edit pages. Remind students of the writing conventions you expect them to use. Debrief as a class by sharing different portions from student flipbooks.