Create a Country 2008: The Sweetest Social Studies Project in the Universe Mr. Kersey Parts 1 and 2 are due Friday, February 20, 2009. "One does not simply walk into Mordor. …It is a barren wasteland. Riddled with fire and ash and dust. The very air you breathe is a poisonous fume.” – Boromir, at the Council of Elrond. Introduction For this Project you are going to create your own country. You get to pick the religion, language, government – all of it, just like Tolkein did in The Lord of the Rings. Pretty cool huh? So, on with this project. Directions Creating your country should be fun, but you're going to need to do a little thinking and a bit of research. Use books, maps, the Internet, and other resources to help you answer the questions that follow. When you're all finished you'll type it up, give the class a short presentation about your country, and then we'll see how you're country fares in our little "world". To make this easier, just follow each step below. First you need to decide what you want your country to be like. For each topic below answer the question or questions. For some of the questions you are going to need to use resources to help you. The answers to the questions need to be accurate. In other words, don't make those parts up. (If this all seems like a bit much, don't worry, because we'll be talking about a lot of these topics in class during project work days). Finally, you are going to type all of this up in a report when you are finished, so make sure to write your answers down and record all resources you use for your bibliography. Okay, enough blabbering. Let's get started. Part 1: Creating Your Country What is the name of your country? (Pretty easy so far, huh?) Where is your country located? You may choose any of the seven continents. Make sure to provide a latitude and longitude for the central part of your country. It's okay if a real country already exists in that spot. You're country if way cooler anyway. Now, answer the following questions. 1.What is the climate like where your country is located? (1-3 sentences). [Geography] 2.What are the physical features of your country? Include bodies of water, landforms, etc. (1-3 sentences). [Geography] 3.Describe the vegetation of your country. (1-3 sentences). [Geography] 4.How do the above environmental factors affect the people of your country? Things to think about: Do people migrate in or out of your country? Are natural resources plentiful? How is the economy affected? (3-5 sentences). [Geography, Economics] 5.What real life country is your country’s climate most like? Why? (2-4 sentences). [Geography] What is your country's system of government? You may choose from dictatorship, monarchy, constitutional monarchy, representative democracy, or direct democracy. [Government] 1.Describe your government. How does it work? Are people free? What are their rights? (2-5 sentences). 2.Who are the leaders of your government? (You can make this part up). 3.What real country has a government most like yours? Explain. (2-6 sentences). What kind of economic system does your country use? Choose from market economy, mixed economy, or a command economy. [Economics] 1.Explain how your country's economy works. (3-5 sentences). 2.What are your country's major exports? Remember to think about your country's natural resources. For example, if your country has a lot of fossil fuels, you can export those to make money. If you have a sweet education system, then you might produce lot's of computers. If your country has a great deal of agriculture, then you might export products like grains. Remember to consider your country's climate too. (3-5 sentences). 3.What are your country's major imports? Just like your exports, consider what your country has and doesn't have. If you live in a desert climate, then you probably need to import lot's of stuff like food. If your country doesn't have many trees, then timber might be something your people will need. (3-5 sentences). 4.What country in the world has an economic system most like your country's economy? Explain. (2-6 sentences). What is the major religion of your country? Choose from Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, or Judaism. In one or two paragraphs, explain the major beliefs of your country's religion. (This has to be accurate). If you want to invent your own religion, that is fine, but you still need to find a way to explain one of the religions above. [Culture] What are some push/pull factors that affect the people in your country and in the world? Think about factors in your country that might push people away, or attract people from other places. Again, remember to keep the location, climate, and resources of your country in mind when you answer this question. This part should be about a paragraph long. [Geography] Describe other cultural traits of the people in your country. Things to consider: What is the dominant language in your country? What are the popular sports in your country? What pass times do the people of your country enjoy? What is the food like in our country? You can base your answers on the actual cultural traits of the people in your country's region, or you can make these up. They just need to be possible and make sense. Have fun. Feel free to make up a sport or a language or whatever. (1-3 paragraphs). [Culture] Finishing Up When you're all finished creating your awesome country, you need to type it all up. Your paper should be typed, double spaced, and use a 12 point font. Each topic should be its own section. Check your spelling and grammar, because those affect your grade as well. Finally, include a properly formatted bibliography in MLA format. Make sure to cite any images or maps you may have used in your report. Part 2: The Map Draw a map of your country. It should be colorful, neat, and reflect effort. Make sure it has the following features: 1.Title 2.Scale 3.Key or legend 4.Major physical features like bodies of water or landforms. 5.Indicate major climate zones or vegetation zones such as desert, rain forest, plains, etc. Your map should be big, like the size of a poster board, so that it will be useful when you share your country with the class. [Geography] Looking Ahead: Part 3 When all this is completed, you will present your country to the rest of the class, and then maybe we will see how everyone's country interacts with one another. You'll get more information on this later. For now, just focus on creating the sweetest country ever. Rubric This project affects the Culture, Geography, Economics, Government, and Social Studies Skills & Methods Standards. Each Standard is worth 40 points, for a total of 200 points. Each standard will be evaluated according to the following guidelines: A: Your answers are well written and complete. There are very few, if any, spelling or grammatical errors. Information is correct, accurate, and well-organized. There are no factual errors of any kind. The creative portions of your country do not conflict with the researched portions. The map is complete, detailed, and reflects effort. Your bibliography is correctly done and complete. B: Same as above, but you may have a few spelling or grammatical errors. There may be one or two minor factual errors. Some created portions of your country may conflict with the researched portions in minor ways. The map is well done, but may be missing one key component or it may not reflect your best effort. Your bibliography has one or two minor errors. C: Your answers are not complete. There may be some questions that have not been fully answered, or there may be one or two major factual errors. Information may not be organized according to the directions. There are numerous spelling or grammatical errors. The creative portions of your project may conflict with factual portions. Your map is missing key components or demonstrates a lack of effort. Your bibliography has a major error or is missing a resource. D: You are missing one or more major portions of the project. Your answers are not complete or have multiple errors. There are numerous spelling or grammatical errors. Information is not organized according to directions. There are major conflicts between the creative portions of the project and the researched portions. Your map is incomplete. Your bibliography is not well done or has multiple errors. F: Your work is incomplete and unacceptable. It is missing major sections. It may have serious mistakes. There are more than five or six spelling or grammatical errors. Project guidelines have not been followed. Your map is missing or incomplete. Your bibliography is missing or incomplete. Create a Country Template Use this template to guide you as you create and write about your country. Cover Page - This is the first page of your country report. It should have a title, your name, the date, and your class. Introduction and Location– This is the first part of your report. It should introduce the reader to your country and include the name of your country and where it is located. It should include your answers to the first set of questions as well. System of Government - This part should include the questions on your country's government. Economic System - This part should include the questions on your country's economy. Major Religion(s) - This sections explains your country's major religion and faith traditions. Push/Pull Factors - Here is where you answer the questions about push-pull factors. Other Cultural Traits - This is a catch all area where you write about anything else that pertains to your country's culture. Have fun. Extra Stuff - If you want to include art work, extra maps, or stories about your country, here is the place.