1. CHINA’S GEOGRAPHY THREE STEPS IN CHINA’S LANDSCAPE 1. Top step of the staircase is in the west Himalayan Mts. Tibet and Mount Everest “Roof of the World” Snow all year around in the Mts. Temperature range in the region (-40 to 100 Fahrenheit) Panda Bears live mostly in the Mts. of south-western China

2. Middle Step There are still hills, but lower and not snowy anymore Most of the middle part of China is deserts The most famous is the Gobi Desert Some of it is grassland where you can graze your cattle (mostly Yaks). But you cannot farm Mongolia is in this part of China It also gets very cold in the winter and hot in the summer

3. Bottom Step Eastern China, nearer to the Pacific Ocean Long rivers running through this part Two biggest rivers are the Yangtze and Yellow Most of the people in China live in this area (Middle Kingdom) Plenty of water for farming Northern part- Mostly grow wheat Southern part- Mostly grow rice Not as hot or cold, but in the spring/summer the snow melts from the Mts and the rivers often flood

5. Geography Conclusion Northeast China Lots of forests Deer, reindeer and tigers Southernmost China Tropical rainforest or jungle Hot and wet in the summer (Typhoons) Ginseng, elephants, wild chickens, leopards, and other jungle animals Xenophobia China traditionally suffered from xenophobia. The fear of outsiders Greek word xenos, meaning “foreigner” or “stranger” They isolated themselves from the world

6. Facts about China Chinese calendar dates back to 2600 B.C. Oldest known calendar 2010 is the “Year of the Tiger” According to readings Buddha named the years after t he twelve animals that came to visit him before he left the earth Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig, Rat, Ox

7. More Facts Red is considered a lucky color in China Fourth graders are expect to know 2000 of over 40,000 written Chinese characters It is considered good luck for the gate to a house to face south 24% of the world speaks Chinese (over 200 different dialects (Pu-tong-hwa a.k.a. Mandarin is the official language)

8. And more facts According to economists, China will become the world’s wealthiest nation by the year 2012 China manufactures 60% of the worlds bicycles (the United States buys 86% of the world’s bicycles)