geography of north America
Purpose:
This assignment is designed to help you demonstrate the ability to gather and critically evaluate information related to the ultimate goal for this class, which as stated on the syllabus is: Formulate regional generalizations, supported with physical and human local specifics, to describe and analyze places at various scales of inquiry.
In addition, it is specifically intended to help further develop your ability to achieve two of the course’s Core Learning Outcomes (CLOs) #1: Describe and identify the basic characteristics of North American regions, and #2: Identify North American countries and major physiographic features by name and map location.
Instructions:
For this assignment you are to imagine that you have been asked to plan a North American road trip for a small group of very wealthy clients who are from some other major world region. (They picked you, because they heard you had taken a college class in the Geography of North America—lucky you!) No one in the group has ever been to North America, but they have expressly stated that their goal for the trip is to, “truly experience what the North American region is all about.” While they would like to see and experience many places that represent the “defining” characteristics of the North American region, as a whole, they also know that it is a vast region with lots of physical and cultural diversity—so they are expecting to see and experience aspects of that, as well. So, you should be as creative as possible in coming up with a variety of different types of places to take them. In other words, don’t just choose a bunch of cities. They have promised to pay you more $$$ the more convinced they are by the end of the trip that their tour guide (YOU!) has met their goals and expectations for the trip.
The catch is, however, they have specifically stated that they want to experience the region by automobile (since they have heard that is how most North Americans prefer to travel)…and they only have 7 days for this road trip! On top of that, they have demanded the following:
1. The trip must include a “stop” at a place in at least ten (10) U.S. states and four (4) Canadian provinces or territories.
2. They want to visit at least 2 different places per day.
3. They do not want to travel more than 400 miles between stops/places. (Even though you will be doing all of the driving—so that they can sleep or view the landscape, etc., of course—they don’t want to spend “all day” in the car.)
So, your task is to put together a detailed itinerary (including a map of the route) for this great North American road trip. For each day on the itinerary, you must state which places you will be stopping at (and which state or province it’s in) and provide a brief justification (at least 3-4 sentences) for why you have chosen that place to be part of this road trip. In each justification you should explain how that place exemplifies one of the North American defining characteristics (i.e., “themes” as given in chapter 1) OR one of the major characteristics of a particular region within North America (e.g., Megalopolis, etc.). As always, you must properly cite ALL sources that you use to help support your justifications
(including your textbook). You must also include the number of miles that you will drive from place to place. (Hint: You can do this using Google Maps: http://maps.google.com). Finally, you must also provide a single map of North America on which you have highlighted the route that will be taken (as closely as possible, but it does not have to be 100% accurate). Each stop/place should also be labeled on the map. Remember, the more satisfied these clients are, the more $$$ you will make! (No pressure! ☺) Good luck!
A hard copy of your typed itinerary and the map should be submitted in class on the date announced. Late assignments will be penalized as stated on the course syllabus.
Recommended format of your itinerary:
Day 1
Place #1: (don’t forget to indicate which state or province it’s in)
Justification: (3-4 sentences)
Distance to next stop: (in miles)
Place #2:
Justification:
Distance to next stop:
Day 2
Place #1:
Justification:
Distance to next stop:
Place #2:
Justification:
Distance to next stop:
(Continue following this format for Days 3-7. Remember, you can include more places/stops per day if you would like, but only 2 per day are required.)
Sources: (use either APA or MLA format)
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