Directorate: Curriculum FET

SUBJECT and GRADE GEOGRAPHY – GRADE 12

TERM 1 Week 4 Lesson 4
TOPIC VALLEY CLIMATES
AIMS OF LESSON To strengthen your knowledge, understanding and interpretation of Valley climates, its impact on
human activities and how it can be managed
RESOURCES Paper based resources Digital resources
• Lesson on pages 2 - 4
• Learner task on page 5 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3ulQS1fUjU
• Textbook: Valley climates

INTRODUCTION You should know from previous grades/current grade/previous lessons

• Grade 10 Factors influencing temperature.
CONCEPTS AND SKILLS You must know: You must be able to:
• Anabatic and Katabatic winds • apply knowledge and concepts
• Inversions on various geographic sources.
• Impact of inversions • read and interpret graphs,
• How inversions managed diagram.
• answer data response questions.
• write a paragraph.

ACTIVITIES/ASSESSMENT • Activity to the lesson is on pages 5

• Additional activities in your textbook
CONSOLIDATION You must study these topics by asking key Geographic questions such as: What and where is it?
What does it look like? What is the impact? How the impact can be managed
VALUES Awareness of challenges caused by valley climates. What farmers to reduce the effect

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 VALLEY CLIMATES
Study this topic with the following questions in mind
What topics will The following topics will be covered in this lesson:
be covered in 1. The effect of slope aspect
this lesson? 2. Development of anabatic and katabatic winds, inversions, frost pockets and radiation fog
3. The influence of valley climates on human activities
1. THE EFFECT OF SLOPE ASPECT
What is it? Where is it? What does it look like? What is the impact?
What is slope The direction in
aspect? which a slope faces
This photo shows you that snow is found on
in relation to the sun
one slope of the mountain, while the other
on is free from snow. This means that the
What slope is • In the Southern one slope is much warmer than the other.
warmer in the hemisphere the These slopes are close to each other, yet
Southern North-facing slope you find a difference in temperature. Some classrooms at
Hemisphere? is warmer your school are warmer than others. It all has to do with the
• In the Northern
direction it faces in relation to the sun, called aspect.
What slope is hemisphere the
warmer in the South-facing slope
Northern is warmer
Hemisphere?

Why is the one

slope warmer See diagram. You
than the other? must be able to
explain why one
slope is warmer than
the other. The slope
that faces the sun
receives direct rays
and will be warmer.

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 2. ANABATIC AND KATABATIC WINDS, INVERSIONS, FROST POCKETS AND RADIATION FOG
What is it? Where is it? How are they formed? What is the impact? How managed?
What are • Anabatic winds
Anabatic and occur during the
Katabatic day when warm .
winds? air rises up the
valley slopes
• Katabatic winds
How are these occur during the
winds formed? night when cold
air subsides down
the valley slopes.
What is an
inversion? How • Inversions form
is it formed? when normal
pattern of air
temperature is
reversed.
• Cold air sinks
down slopes
• Colder air is Everything starts with the downward
trapped under movement of cold air along a slope. This
warmer air. cold air collects at the bottom of the valley,
• Temperature forming frost pockets and inversions.
increases with
altitude
What is a frost See diagram for frost
pocket? pocket

What is Radiation fog

radiation fog? • Forms on cloud-
less nights
• Rapid radiation
• Condensation
occurs
• Small droplets
suspended in air

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 3. THE INFLUENCE OF VALLEY CLIMATES ON HUMAN ACTIVITIES
What is the impact? How can it be managed?
What is the • Cold temperatures
influence of in valley
valley climates • Non frost-resistant The efects and management of valley climates on settlement and farming
on human crops destroyed are popular examination questions. Make sure that you know where the
activities? • Inversions trap warm and cold air is found, especially during the night.
polluted air
• Respatory
problems
• Fog reduces
visibility

How can it be • People prefer to

managed? build houses on
north-facing slope
• Settlements in
thermal belt
• Vineyards planted
on warmer north-
facing slope
• Frost resistant
crops planted in
frost pocket
• Crops sensitive to
frost are planted
higher up the
slope

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LEARNER TASK
The questions are based on the diagram of an inversion below.

1. Identify the wind at A. (1x1 (1)

2. Explain how this wind is formed. (3x2) (6)

3. What is an inversion? (1x1) (1)

4. Explain how an inversion is formed. (3x2) (6)

5. Indicate if hot or cold air would be found at B and C. (2x1) (2)

6. Explain how a frost pocket will be formed in the valley. (3x2) (6)

7. In a paragraph of approximately EIGHT lines, evaluate the probable impact

of the wind A on agriculture and settlements in the valley. (4x2) (8)

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CONCEPTS/TERMS
• You must know the definitions of the following concepts/terms
• Definitions of terms appear in in exam questions.
▪ These terms are used when setting questions. You must know them in order to
understand the questions
▪ These terms should form part of your Geography subject language

WORD BOARD

Aspect Thermal belt

Anabatic wind Frost pocket

Katabatic wind Radiation fog

Inversion

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 Directorate: Curriculum FET

SUBJECT and GRADE GEOGRAPHY – GRADE 12

TERM 1 Week 4 Lesson 5
TOPIC URBAN CLIMATES
AIMS OF LESSON To strengthen your knowledge, understanding and interpretation of City climates and its impact.

RESOURCES Paper based resources Digital resources

• Lesson on pages 8 - 11
• Learner task on page 12 - 13
• Textbook: Valley and Urban https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GA39jdAPyhU&t=3s
climates

INTRODUCTION You should know from previous grades/current grade/previous lessons

• Grade 10 – Relative humidity
CONCEPTS AND SKILLS You must know:
• Why urban areas are warmer than rural areas
• Causes and effects of Heat islands and pollution
domes.
• How heat islands and pollution domes managed
You must be able to:
• apply knowledge and concepts
on various geographic sources.
• read and interpret graphs,
diagram.
• answer data response questions.
• write a paragraph.

ACTIVITIES/ASSESSMENT • Activity to the lesson is on pages 12-13

• Additional activities in your textbook
CONSOLIDATION You must study these topics by asking key Geographic questions such as: What and where is it?
What does it look like? What is the impact? How the impact can be managed
VALUES Awareness of challenges caused by pollution domes and heat islands. What each of us
can do to reduce the effect
Compiled by Glenn Samaai

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 URBAN CLIMATES
Study this topic with the following questions in mind
What topics will The following topics will be covered in this lesson:
be covered in 1. Reasons for differences between rural and urban climates
this lesson? 2. Urban heat islands – causes and effects
3. Pollution domes – causes and effects
4. Strategies to reduce the heat island effects

1. REASONS FOR THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN RURAL AND URBAN CLIMATES

What is it? Where is it? What does it look like?

Why are urban

areas warmer
than rural
areas?
Visualise a city with
its artificial surfaces
and a rural area with
natural surfaces like
grass, trees, farms
etc. it will help you
to answer this
question

How do rural You must know how

and urban rural and urban CLIMATE FACTOR RURAL AREA URBAN AREA
climates differ? climates differ. Use Temperature Cooler Warmer
your textbook and Cloud cover Fewer clouds More clouds
give a factor for Precipitation Less rain More rain
contributing to each Relative humidity Higher Lower
of the differences. Wind speed Higher Less, more turbulence
(LEARNER’S TASK 1) Fog Less More

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 2. URBAN HEAT ISLANDS – CAUSES AND EFFECTS
What is it? Where is it? How is it formed? What is the impact?
An urban heat
What is an island is when the
urban heat urban area has .
island? warmer
temperatures than
the surrounding rural An urban heat island profile. The
area highest temperatures are found in
the urban area (CBD) and
How is an urban See diagram – the decrease as you move away from
heat island causes of urban the urban area (CBD)
caused? heat islands

THE CAUSES OF URBAN HEAT ISLANDS

The causes of
What are the • Human discomfort urban heat islands
effects of urban • Heat stress must be studied
heat islands? • Possible death with the lesson on
• Release of page 8 – why are
Greenhouse urban areas
gasses warmer than rural
• Increase in smog areas.
• Reduces visibility
• Pollution levels
increase

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 3. POLLUTION DOMES – CAUSES AND EFFECTS
What is it? Where is it? How is it formed? What is the impact?

What is a A pollution dome is

pollution dome? a trapped mass of
polluted air over the
city

Caused by air
How are pollution from:
pollution domes • Industries
caused? • Domestic fires
• Car exhaust fumes
• Burning of fossil
fuels
• Inversions that trap
pollution

What are the See diagram

effects of
pollution
domes?

The effect of pollution domes are more dominant during the night.
The polluted air is trapped and sinking air prevents it from excaping
into the atmosphere

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 4. STATEGIES TO REDUCE THE HEAT ISLAND EFFECT
How can it be managed?

Sugest
sustainable
strategies to
reduce urban
heat island
effects?

SEE MINDMAP

Questions regarding sustainable management strategies are very popular

questions in Geography examinations. Use the above mindmap to prepare a
paragraph-type question for exam purposes.

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LEARNER’S TASK 1
Complete the table. You will need the lesson on page 8 as well as your text book to complete the task.

CLIMATE FACTOR RURAL AREA URBAN AREA FACTOR CONTRIBUTING TO DIFFERENCE

Temperature Warmer More artificial heating in urban areas
Fewer clouds More dust and pollution particles in urban
areas
Precipitation
Relative humidity Higher
Wind speed Less
Fog Hygroscopic nuclei in atmosphere in urban
areas

LEARNER’S TASK 2
The questions are based on the article and diagram below

THE EXTRA MILE

When is the best time for us to The sports scientist Dr Ross While at mid-day the traffic is
run? If you have the luxury of Tucker believes a compromise is lighter, but you’ll have hotter
choosing your exercise time, required. “Traffic is heaviest in conditions to contend with,” says
there are several options the early morning and late Tucker.
available to you. afternoon, so there’s more
pollution and fumes in the air, In the end, making time to run is
One argument is that by running but you have cooler weather to always better than not running at
in the morning, you increase train in. all.
your metabolism during the day
resulting in greater weight loss.
Another is that your muscles
warm up as the day goes on and
that you can run further in the
afternoon or evening with less
risk of injury.

[Source: Adapted from Runner’s Magazine]

1 Give ONE reason why it is a good option to run in the morning. (1x1) (1)

2 Why, according to Dr Ross Tucker, are there higher levels of pollution in the
early morning and late afternoon? (1x1) (1)

3 Pollution domes are largely responsible for an increase of pollution levels in

a city.
(a) What is a pollution dome? (1x1) (1)
(b) Make use of the diagram and explain how pollution domes
contributed to the conditions discussed in the article. (2x2) (4)

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4 Explain how the conditions mentioned in the article may influence the
health of the people living in the city. (2x2) (4)

5 You are a concerned runner training for a marathon. In a paragraph of

approximately 8 lines suggest possible strategies to your local municipality
that could to address the problem discussed in the article. (4x2) (8)

CONCEPTS/TERMS
• You must know the definitions of the following concepts/terms
• Definitions of terms appear in in exam questions.
▪ These terms are used when setting questions. You must know them in order to
understand the questions
▪ These terms should form part of your Geography subject language

WORD BOARD
Heat Island
Pollution dome

Hygroscopic nuclei
Smog
Relative humidity

This brings the section regarding Climate and Weather to an end. Follow

this link as revision by means of a telematics broadcast of the whole

section.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poOmuGV5fr0&list=PLFm4vZVcwuDbNQX5V2gxB2SVqoeg7oIHn&in
dex=1

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