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9th grade How hazards and resources shaped where people live worksheet

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How hazards and resources shaped where people live

Grade 9 Science Worksheet

NameDate

Circle the best answer.

  1. Read this first

    Use this

    Table, U.S. coastal counties (NOAA), with columns Measure, NOAA figure: People in coastal counties, 129 million, almost 40% of the nation; Share of land (excluding Alaska), less than 10%; Coastal people per square mile, about 468; Nation's people per square mile, about 113.

  2. Using the NOAA table, about how many times the nation's density is the coastal density, by Bo's math?

    • About 40 times
    • About 0.24 times
    • About 355 times
    • About 4 times
  3. NOAA: from 1970 to 2020, coastal counties gained about 40.5 million people, about 46%. Roughly how many lived there in 1970, by Esme's math?

    • About 19 million
    • About 59 million
    • About 88 million
    • About 129 million
  4. Using the NOAA table, why might coasts hold so many people on so little land, by Jun's reading?

    • Coasts hold most of the nation's land
    • Coasts have no storms or flooding for people to weigh
    • Coastal counties support many jobs, ports and trade
    • People judge coasts on their beaches alone
  5. A home sits in a 100-year floodplain (USGS: 1% chance a year). What is the chance of no flood in a given year, by Kira's math?

    • 99%
    • 50%
    • 90%
    • 0%
  6. With a 1% chance each year (USGS), what is the chance of at least one 100-year flood in 2 years, by Luz's math?

    Use the picture in question 4.

    • About 2%
    • About 0.01%
    • About 200%
    • About 50%
  7. With a 1% chance each year (USGS), what is the chance of at least one 100-year flood in 30 years, by Milo's math?

    Use the picture in question 4.

    • About 30%
    • About 0.3%
    • About 26%
    • About 74%
  8. Use this

    A world map marking the Ring of Fire and the Nile and Mississippi floodplains.

  9. USGS: most metal ores mined in the world, such as copper and gold, are tied to what, by Noah's reading?

    • Sediment left on river floodplains
    • Sand dunes in deserts
    • Magmas deep in the roots of extinct volcanoes
    • Coral reefs growing along coasts
  10. How can the same volcano be both a hazard and a resource, by Ren's reading (USGS)?

    • A volcano that holds ores stops being a hazard
    • Its soils turn fertile during each eruption, then fade
    • Its eruptions are its main resource for farms
    • Its eruptions are a hazard, while its soils, heat and ores are resources
  11. Model site scores, 1 (weak) to 3 (strong) (model data)

    SiteSoilWaterTransportSafety from hazard
    A3331
    B3211
    C1232
    D1113
  12. Using the model scores, what is site A's total, by Tala's math?

    • 7 points
    • 10 points
    • 1 point
    • 13 points
  13. Using the model scores, why might people still pick site A despite its low safety score, by Ari's reading?

    • Its soil, water and transport scores outweigh one low score
    • People pick a site by one criterion alone
    • Floods cannot reach a farm built on a floodplain
    • Its safety score is the highest of the four sites
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9th grade How hazards and resources shaped where people live worksheet – printable
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About this worksheet

Explain how hazards and resources shape where people live. Every version has 10 questions, and the answer key prints on the second page.

What your child will learn

  • I can explain why floodplains, volcanic slopes and coasts draw people: fertile soil, water, transport routes, ports and resources.
  • I can explain that the same places carry hazards, that earthquakes and eruptions cluster along plate boundaries, and read a 100-year flood as a 1% yearly chance.
  • I can score sites on several criteria in a table and explain why people weigh benefits against hazards.

Standard: HS-ESS3-1

Words to know

floodplain: Flat land beside a river that the river floods from time to time

alluvial soil: Soil built from sediment that rivers drop

plate boundary: Where two tectonic plates meet; most quakes and eruptions happen here

100-year flood: A flood with a 1% chance of happening in any year

criteria table: A table that scores options on several goals

trade-off: Giving up some of one benefit to gain another

Common mistakes

Your child misnamed why people settle a place. USGS: floodplain sediment and weathered volcanic rock make fertile soil, and river valleys give water and transport routes.

Your child left out the hazard. USGS: the same floodplains and volcanoes that give rich soil also flood and erupt; people weigh benefits against hazards.

Your child placed hazards at random. USGS: most earthquakes and eruptions happen along plate boundaries, such as the Ring of Fire.

Questions parents ask

What is the most common mistake with how hazards and resources shaped where people live?

Your child misnamed why people settle a place. USGS: floodplain sediment and weathered volcanic rock make fertile soil, and river valleys give water and transport routes.

Are these 9th grade science worksheets free to print?

Yes. All 6 printable versions at each level are free to print, with the answer key, and no account is needed.

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