Coastal California

High school (ages 12+)
Geography

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/coastal-california

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. How big is Coastal California?Includes Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco Bay Area, and Santa Barbara
2. What is the economic drivers?Technology, entertainment, international trade (ports), tourism, agriculture, aerospace, and biotechnology
3. Why does Coastal California have fog?The cool California Current off the coast cools the air, creating fog especially in the northern and central parts. This fog helps keep the local forests and wildlife healthy.
4. How did people first arrive in Coastal California?Long before Europeans came, many Indigenous tribes lived there and built advanced societies. The first European explorer, Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo, arrived in 1542.

Pacific Rim: The lands and waters surrounding the Pacific Ocean, forming a major global economic and cultural zone.
Mediterranean Climate: A climate characterized by hot, dry summers and mild, wet winters, typical of regions around the Mediterranean Sea and Coastal California.
Tectonic Plates: Massive, irregularly shaped slabs of solid rock that make up the Earth's crust and upper mantle.