Location and physical characteristics of cold environments
I can describe the location and physical characteristics of cold environments.
Location and physical characteristics of cold environments
I can describe the location and physical characteristics of cold environments.
These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.
Lesson details
Key learning points
- Cold environments (polar and tundra) and located at high latitudes close to the poles.
- Cold environments have distinctive physical characteristics.
- The climate influences other physical characteristics of cold environments.
Keywords
Cold environments - environments found at higher latitudes and higher altitudes; they include polar, tundra and alpine biomes
Biome - a global land area that is characterised by its plants, animals and climate
Latitude - the angular distance of a place north or south of Earth's Equator
Tundra - a vast, flat, treeless Arctic region where vegetation growth is hindered by extreme low temperatures and short growing seasons
Climate - the average weather conditions of a place over a long period of time, typically 30 years or more
Common misconception
Cold environments receive a lot of precipitation (in this case snowfall).
While some areas of coastal tundra does receive a substantial quantity of precipitation, in reality most cold environment regions are extremely dry, with some areas receiving less than 250 mm of precipitation per year - defining them as deserts.
To help you plan your year 10 geography lesson on: Location and physical characteristics of cold environments, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your year 10 geography lesson on: Location and physical characteristics of cold environments, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
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The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
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Explore more key stage 4 geography lessons from the Cold environments unit, dive into the full secondary geography curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.
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