003 - Desert Landscapes

Factual Question

What do deserts look like?

What landforms are created in a desert?

Key Terminology

  • landscape
  • aeolian forces

Define the words above using either the dictionaries in the classroom or the following links:

Activity One - Draw

  • Draw a box which is the size of a third of your page and inside it draw a desert landscape.

Activity Two - Interpreting Images

Not all deserts are vast areas of sand. The Sahara desert is 26 times larger than Great Britain but only 10% is sand. The rest are rocky or have steep sided mountains. Look at the photographs below and answer the following questions:

  1. Choose a word to describe each photograph.
  2. Write a short paragraph to describe each photograph.
  3. What do all the photographs have in common?
  4. What are the hills in photograph one called?
  5. Why has the ground in three cracked?
  6. In which photograph do you think there is the most rainfall? Why?
  7. In which photograph do you think people are most likely to live? Explain your answer.
  8. What evidence is there in photograph two that the hills are made from layers of rock that have been squeezed together over thousands of years?
  9. Suggest a reason to explain how the plants in photograph four get their water.

Photograph One: Namib Desert, Namibia

Namib Desert

Photograph Two: Nevada Desert, USA

Nevada Desert, USA

Photograph Three: Gobi Desert, China

Gobi Desert

Photograph Four: Death Valley, Mojave Desert, USA

Death Valley National Park