PENNSVALLEY
4
COPYRIGHT
Lesson 1:
Where in theWorld is the EasternHemisphere?
Welcome to theEasternHemisphere.Thiswill be your major topic of study for the year.Beforewe
begin the study of theEasternHemisphere, let’s review some of the concepts about planet earth.
In our study of theWesternHemisphere, we learned that our planet earth is in the shape of a ball,
or
sphere
.Whenwe draw an imaginary line around the earth and create two equal parts, each part is
known as a
hemisphere
.
The imaginary line that runs east towest and divides the earth into two equal parts is known as the
A)Equator
.Doyou remember thenames for the twoequal parts?Anyareanorthof theequator iscalled
the
. Any area south of the equator is called the .
Mapmakers have actually divided the earth twice into two equal halves.This time, we can draw a
line around themiddle of the earth (or any sphere) north to south, and we can continue the line until
we have circled the earth.We have two names for this line. Each name serves a different purpose.
Onone sideof theearth, this line is referred toas the
B) PrimeMeridian
.On theother sideof the
earth, the line is called the International Date Line. The part of our world to the west of the Prime
Meridian is in the
C)Western Hemisphere
. The part of the world east of the Prime Meridian is the
D) EasternHemisphere
.
ACTIVITY:
Label theworldmapon thispagewith the followingboldfaced terms.Use the letters tohelpyou identify
and locate each term on theworldmap.Use the readingmaterial above as a reference.
A) Equator
B) PrimeMeridian
C)WesternHemisphere
D) EasternHemisphere
Geography Skills
