Social Studies
Lesson Plan

Geography of the Himalayas

Learning Objective:
Compare the physical characteristics of places including soils, landforms, vegetation, wildlife, climate and natural hazards.

Teacher Directions:
How does the geography of the Himalayas compare to the Rocky Mountains? Compare and contrast the two ranges. Then also compare and contrast topographic regions where you live. Let’s find out a little more about the geography of the Himalayas first.

The Himalayas are a great mountain system that is 1500 miles long and covering an area of 612,021 square kilometers. The Himalayas go through Northwestern Pakistan, Northern India, Southern Tibet, Nepal, Sikkim and Bhutan. The Himalayas are bordered on the north by Central Asia and bordered on the south by the plains of India.

The Himalayan mountains are grouped into four parallel mountain belts: Shivaliks, Himachal, Himadri and Trans-Himalayas. The Shivaliks are the outer Himalayas and sub-Himalayas that rise out of the northern plains of India and Pakistan. They are the southernmost and have elevations of 900 to 1200 meters, or about 3,000 to 4,000 feet.

The Himachal mountain belt is in the middle section of the mountain chain. The average altitude of mountains in this range is 3700 meters to 4500 meters (12,000-15,000 ft.). The Himachal belt extends southeast from Pakistan and through India and Nepal.

Himadri is the longest, northernmost and most continuous belt in the Himalayas and is found in northern India and Nepal. Mount Everest is found in this mountain range. The average elevation is about 20,000 feet. This range contains nine of the fourteen highest peaks in the world.

The Trans-Himalayas are the Tibetan Himalayas — or all the mountains in Tibet.

To find out more about the geography of the Himalayas, check out:
Kingdom of Nepal — Geography

Now let’s compare the Himalayas to the Rocky Mountains. Explore the following Web site to find out more about the elevations and geographic areas of the Rocky Mountains.
Rocky Mountains

Once you have sufficiently researched the similarities and differences of both mountain ranges, then use the Venn* diagram to display the shared and distinct characteristics of the two great mountain ranges. In the area of the left circle that doesn’t overlap with the right circle, write characteristics that make the Himalayas distinct. In the area of the right circle that doesn’t overlap with the left circle, write characteristics that make the Rocky Mountains distinct. In the area in which the two circles overlap, write things that the two mountain ranges have in common.

Finally, let’s take a look at your region (you can define “region” any way you like — your city, county, state, region of the country or country). Let’s answer the following questions about your region:

Let’s do the same kind of comparison for two of the topographic variations in your area. Again, use the Venn* diagram. In the area of the left circle that doesn’t overlap with the right circle, write characteristics (vegetation, wildlife, landforms or human activity) that are distinct for one of the topographical areas. In the area of the right circle that doesn’t overlap with the left circle, write characteristics (vegetation, wildlife, landforms or human activity) that are distinct for one of the other topographical areas. In the area in which the two circles overlap, write things that the two topographical areas have in common.

When completed with all of the activities, draw a picture of each of the areas. Show or display your drawings. Ask other students to compare and contrast the drawings of the different areas represented.

Resources:
Kingdom of Nepal — Geography
Rocky Mountains

Activity Sheet:
Venn*

Assessment:
Social Studies Assessment Sheet*