Shipping routes, canals and chokepoints

Grade 9 Social Studies Worksheet - Building Confidence

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Use this

   Card A. Compare chart, “Two shipping canals”, columns Canal | Opened | Length | Joins: Suez Canal | 17 November 1869 | 193.3 km | the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea; Panama Canal | 15 August 1914 | 82 km | the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Notes: a canal is a waterway people dig; a strait is a natural narrow channel between two larger bodies of water. A chokepoint is a narrow passage that many ships must use. The Suez Canal is at sea level, with no locks. The Panama Canal’s locks lift ships up to Gatun Lake, 26 m above sea level, and lower them at the other end; a wider third lane of locks opened on 26 June 2016 for larger ships. Without the Panama Canal, ships sail around the southern tip of South America.

2. 1.

   Which description of the Suez Canal is right, Ari asks?

   • A canal: people dug it, and ships pass without locks at sea level
   • A canal with locks that lift ships up to a lake, like Panama’s
   • A strait: it joins two seas, so it is a natural narrow channel
   • A chokepoint rather than a canal, since many ships must use it
3. 2.

   Why does the Panama Canal need locks while the Suez Canal does not, Bo asks?

   • Locks are needed whenever a canal joins two different oceans
   • Panama is the longer canal, so it needs more locks to cross
   • Panama climbs to Gatun Lake, 26 m up; Suez stays at sea level
   • Panama’s ships are larger, so just locks can hold them in place
4. 3.

   Which canal is longer, and by about how many times, Esme asks?

   • Panama, since it joins two oceans and so must be longer
   • Suez, about 111 times as long, since 193.3 minus 82 is 111
   • Suez, about 2.4 times as long: 193.3 km against 82 km
   • Suez, about 1.4 times as long, since 193.3 divided by 82 is about 1.4
5. 4.

   A student says: “The Panama Canal is shorter than Suez, so it is easier to cross.” What does Card A support, Jun asks?

   • Suez is easier because it is longer and so wider
   • Panama is shorter, but it has locks and Suez has none
   • Panama is easier, since a shorter canal is a quicker crossing
   • Nothing, since lengths and locks cannot be compared
6. 5.

   What makes a passage a chokepoint, Kira asks?

   • People dug it to join two seas or oceans
   • It is longer than 100 km, which makes ships slow down
   • It lifts ships over land with locks and a lake
   • It is narrow and many ships must use it

7. Use this

   Card B. Two made-up passages. Lantern Channel is a natural channel 12 km wide between two seas, and the ships bound for six northern ports pass through it. Sable Cut was dug across a neck of land in 1950, is 30 km long, has no locks, and ships can instead take another route that is three days longer.

8. 6.

   How should Sable Cut be described, Milo asks?

   • A canal; it is a chokepoint only if many ships must use it
   • A chokepoint, since it is 30 km long and narrow
   • A canal with locks, since a canal cuts through land
   • A strait, since it joins two seas across a neck of land

9. Use this

   Card A. Compare chart, “Two shipping canals”, columns Canal | Opened | Length | Joins: Suez Canal | 17 November 1869 | 193.3 km | the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea; Panama Canal | 15 August 1914 | 82 km | the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Notes: a canal is a waterway people dig; a strait is a natural narrow channel between two larger bodies of water. A chokepoint is a narrow passage that many ships must use. The Suez Canal is at sea level, with no locks. The Panama Canal’s locks lift ships up to Gatun Lake, 26 m above sea level, and lower them at the other end; a wider third lane of locks opened on 26 June 2016 for larger ships. Without the Panama Canal, ships sail around the southern tip of South America.

10. 7.

    The Panama Canal opened a wider third lane of locks in 2016. What does that suggest, Pia asks?

    • The older locks could not take the largest ships of 2016
    • The canal became longer in 2016, so it could take larger ships
    • The older locks were built for ships of 1914, so they are no use now
    • The older locks were closed in 2016 and replaced
11. 8.

    Ren’s note says: “The Suez Canal has locks that lift ships up 26 m.” Which fix is right?

    • Leave it: both canals lift ships, one by 26 m and one by less
    • Change it: the Suez Canal lowers ships 26 m below sea level
    • Change it: Panama’s locks lift ships 26 m; Suez is at sea level
    • Change it: Suez lifts ships to Gatun Lake, 82 m above sea level
12. 9.

    Tala’s note says: “The Panama Canal opened on 17 November 1869.” Which fix is right?

    • Change it: Panama opened on 15 August 1914, not 1869
    • Leave it: both canals opened in the 1800s, so the note is close
    • Change it: Panama opened in 1869 and Suez in 1914
    • Change it: Panama opened on 26 June 2016, with its third lane
13. 10.

    Zee’s note says: “A canal and a strait are the same thing.” Which fix is right?

    • Leave it: both are narrow waterways between two bodies of water
    • Change it: people dig a canal; a strait is a natural channel
    • Change it: people dig a strait; a canal is a natural channel
    • Change it: a canal has locks and a strait has no locks