The Estonian Barometer: A Geopolitical Study of Estonia through Historical Maps

Bell Ringer Read the following paragraph and decide what you would do. Write your response on the handout provided. You are having a snowball fight with your worst enemy. Esther, a third kid that neither one of you likes, is playing close by on a hill with lots of snow. You can stay where you are or try to move to her position. What would you do knowing your enemy has the same idea? What are you going to do about Esther?

Notes Does geography impact the value of a place to its inhabitants or neighboring peoples? A.Having natural resources such as water, trees, and minerals makes a place valuable. Resources that are shared by countries, such as rivers, can be a source of conflict. B.Having access to water for fishing, irrigation, trade, and transportation makes a place even more valuable. C.Landforms such as mountains can provide a barrier from enemies, but also prevent a country from certain economic activities such as farming. Living on a plain, with access to water, has led to humans farming as their main economic endeavor. D.Land between two fighting countries can become a battleground.

Create your physiographic map of Eastern Europe Use a world atlas or textbook maps to locate the European continent and plot the features listed on the bottom of your map handout. Create a key to match the following color coding: Blue-water, Brown-mountains, Green- plains, Red-national borders. Once you have found all the features, color your map accordingly.

Map Analysis You will now use your handout notes and map to analyze Estonia’s geographic importance. Follow the instructions on page 3 of your handout.

Post-Discussion Exit Ticket On page #3 of your handout, answer the Exit Ticket question located at the bottom of the page.

Gallery Walk: Estonian Freedom Today you will examine maps of Estonia from the 2 nd Century to the 20 th Century. As you look at a map, you will record your information on the freedom barometer bar graph (handout, page 4). For each map, write a brief summary of the activity in the space below the date, and rate/shade in Estonia’s level of freedom/independence. Your rating scale should range from 1 (no freedom) to 10 (total freedom).

Write an essay in which you respond to the following prompt: Estonia’s geography has impacted its geopolitical value—its desirability—which has made it a target throughout history Use information from your Freedom Barometer notes, Eastern Europe physiographic map, and handout notes to prove this thesis. Your essay must show the connection between Estonia’s level of freedom and its geography. Essay