Southwestern States 4^th Grade Social Studies Activity

Thomas Intermediate School

The Southwest region is made up of four states: Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and Oklahoma. Your grade for this activity will be based on the number of activities and the quality of your work.

5 activities = A

Make a collage showing the various environments of the Southwestern states.

Imagine that you are taking a river rafting trip in the Grand Canyon. Write a letter to a friend describing your adventure.

Research the Dust Bowl, an area of drought in the 1930s. Write a report of life during the Dust Bowl. The following links will help you: http://drylands.nasm.edu:1995/dust.html http://www.usd.edu/anth/epa/dust.html

Make a poster showing the natural resources of the Southwestern states.

Pattillo Higgins discovered oil in Beaumont, Texas. Interview a friend who is pretending to be Higgins. Tape record or video the interview. The following links will help you: http://hal.lamar.edu/~energymuseum/collections.htm http://www.thehistorynet.com/picture/0110.htm http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/view/HH/fhi7.html

Make a commercial for television advertising one of the National Parks in the Southwestern states. Perform it for the class.

The Navajo Indians lived in the Southwest. They used wool to weave beautiful blankets and rugs. Use construction paper or fabric scraps to make o small blanket or rug.

Make a model of one of the shelters used by the Native American tribes that lived in the Southwest.

The Navajo write many beautiful songs and poems praising nature. Write a poem about something in nature that is found in the Southwest.

Some Navajo children live and attend school on a reservation. Find out what life is like on a reservation. Write a report to share with the class. The site on Tuba City might help you.

Make a board game that will teach your classmates information about the Southwestern states.

Find the words and tune to a song cowboys sang on the range. Make up your own verse for the song.