Geography

The study of land surface and how people live on and use the land.

Landforms

Mount Driskell is the highest point in Louisiana. It is a mountain in Louisiana

Louisiana has both swamplands left and plains below.

Rivers and LakesThe Mississippi River flows from Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico.

Lake Pontchartrain is a lakenorth of New Orleans.

Lowland

• The lowest point in the state is New Orleans.

New Orleans is the lowest point in Louisiana. New Orleans is located in southern part ofLouisiana.

Marshes/Wetlands

• The coastal wetlands of Louisiana produce most fish, crab, and oysters annually of the contiguous 48 states.

• Louisiana has about on-third of the coastal marshes in the U.S.

• Louisiana’s coastal areas are home to many species of wildlife, fish, and birds.

• Since the BP oil spill in the gulf these coastal wetlands are in danger. Warning…the next few slides show pictures of our coastland now since the oil spill.

BP Oil Spill

Our coastal wetlandsOur gulf coast

Under the ocean

More Pictures

Our state bird…the Brown Pelican

So what is the definition of Geography???

Think About Our Future!• Geography is the study of land surface and

how people live on and USE the land.• What is wrong with the way we are using the

land?• Do you have any ideas how we can clean up

our state?

History of Louisiana• The United States and Great Britain were at war in

1812. The last important battle of the war took place in Louisiana on January 8, 1815. It was called the Battle of New Orleans. The American Generals knew that Chalmette would be a good place to fight. The British had to march between a swamp and a river to reach Chalmette.

• Today the National Park Service takes care of the historic Chalmette Battlefield.

• Visitors can climb steps to the top of a monument and view the battlefield from there. There is a cemetery next to the battlefield for American veterans.

Chalmette Battlefield

• A monument is a building or statue that honors a person or event.

• Veterans are people who fought in their country’s wars.

HeritageHeritage is something that is passed on from one generation to

the next.Many people came to Louisiana from different countries and

brought unique styles of music from their heritage. Through the years, people learned these different styles. They also blended the styles and created new music. Today, bands play

new styles of music at festivals.Opelousas has become a zydeco music capital.Clifton Chenier was born in Louisiana.

Clifton Chenier

Opelousas, Louisiana

Governor and Constitution

• A governor is the head of a state government. Our governor is Bobby Jindal.

• A constitution is a writtenplan for government.

Governor

• The governor leads the executive branch. The governor works with the legislative branch to make new laws. Judges in the judicial branch help decide if a law is fair under the constitution.

Governor-ExecutiveBranch.

Legislative branch-Senators and Congress

Judicial Branch-Judges

Emergency

• An emergency is sudden and terrible trouble.

Process

• Process-change or make something.In the late 1700’s Etienne de Bore’ arrived in the

Louisiana area. He knew a way to make the cane into grains that look like the sugar you see today. Sugar mills were started to process the cane.

Construct• Construct means to make or build.

Where is Louisiana?

Louisiana

Name the states that are Louisiana’s neighbors

Arkansas

Mississippi

Texas

Louisiana’s Neighbor to the South

Gulf of Mexico

Boot• Louisiana is in the shape of a boot. The “toe” of the

boot shaped Louisiana sticks out into the gulf. New Orleans is located in the “toe.”

New Orleans

The United States’ Neighbors

Canada

Mexico

HemisphereA hemisphere is one half of Earth. “Hemi” means half.

Louisiana is located in the United States, on the North American continent, and it isin the Western Hemisphere ofthe Earth.

Robert La SalleRobert La Salle was an Explorer. He was an earlyExplorer to our state. An explorer is a person who travels to new land and discoveries. Native Americans told La Salle about a river called the Mississippi River. On Feb. 13, 1682 he began canoeing south on the Mississippi River. On April 9, he reached the gulf of Mexico. He claimed the land for France. La Salle named the huge area of land Louisiana after Louis XIV, the King of France. France controlled Louisiana for more than 100 years.

1643-1687

What is a Map?

A map is a drawing of a place. Maps show us where Earth’s land and water are.A map can be a drawing of Earth.

Maps Have Titles and Symbols

Maps have features that help us read and use them. Maps have titles.Titles let us know what we are looking at on the map. Symbols on a map can be shapesLines, or colors.

Title

Symbols on a Map

Compass RoseA compass rose is adecorative pointer thatShows north, south, east, and west.N stands for North, S stands for South, E stands for East, and W stands for West.

A map key shows us whatthe symbols on a map mean.

Political Map

A political map of an area shows where cities and the borders of states and countries are located

Physical Map

A physical map of an area shows landforms and bodies of water.

body of water

landforms

History MapA history map show an area as it was at some time in the past

Louisiana Purchase

Map of Confederate States

Grid Map

A map that has a grid. A grid is a pattern of lines that form squares. The squares Usually have numbers and letters. You can use a grid to find places on a map.

Where is DanbyLocated?

It is located incolumn B and in column 3.

The answer is written like this

B,3

Different Kinds of Borders

Some borders are formed by bodies of water such as rivers, gulfs, and oceans. Thismap shows different kinds of state borders

The MississippiRiver is used as some of theBorder between Mississippi and Louisiana.

Lesson 2 The Regions of Louisiana

• Region is a large area with special features that make it different from other areas.

East Gulf Coastal Plain

Mississippi River Plain

West GulfCoastal Plain

Delta• The Louisiana Delta comes from the Greek

letter Delta. It means shape of a triangle. The Mississippi Delta is shaped like a triangle.

Delta

Louisiana

The Delta covers 13,000 square miles.

More about the Delta• The “mouth” of a river is where the river flows into a larger

body of water. When the Mississippi River enters the Gulf of Mexico, it drops small pieces of sand and soil called silt that it has carried away from the land as it forms. The new land that builds up from the silt dropped by the river is called a DELTA.

Badcau Bayou

A bayou is a slow moving stream.Badcau Bayou is in the West Gulf Coastal Plain.

Line Graph

• Line Graph show how something changes over time.

Oceans and Continents