W o r l d H er it ag e s it e s Literacy/Geography
The World Heritage Commission lists important sites around the world that need
to be protected. In 2008, 878 sites were on the World Heritage List. The list
included 679 cultural sites, 174 natural sites and 25 mixed sites.
1. Look at pages 56 and 57 of the atlas.
a. What is a cultural site? Give one example.
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
b. Use the map to give two examples of cultural sites in Asia.
________________________________________________________________
c. Which important natural site is found on the mainland of South America?
________________________________________________________________
d. A mixed site is one that is important for both natural and cultural reasons.
Give two examples of mixed sites from Australia.
________________________________________________________________
2. Read the three case studies on page 57 of the atlas and complete this table.
World Type of Reason it is important
Heritage Site site
Cultural
Natural
Mixed
3. In 2007, there was a global Internet competition to find the ‘Seven Wonders of
the Modern World’. Use the following table, the atlas and other research to help
you find one important piece of information about each of the sites.
Wonders of Atlas Information
the world reference
Christ the Page 150
Redeemer
statue
Great Wall of Page 56
China
Taj Mahal Page 116
The Page 122
Colosseum
The City of
Petra
Machu Picchu Page 150
4. Research and create a poster of your own ‘Seven Wonders of the Natural
World’. Use the atlas as a starting point. Here are some examples to get you
started.
Dinosaur Provincial Park p. 57, Daintree Rainforest p. 61, Great Barrier
Reef p. 61, Shark Bay p. 80, Uluru p. 82, Lake Eyre p. 84, Fraser Island p. 86,
Tasmanian Wilderness p. 94, Himalayas p. 109, Sogne Fiord p. 121, Sahara
Desert p. 130, Kruger National Park p. 130, Nile River p. 131, Victoria
Falls p. 131, Yellowstone National Park p. 138, Monument Valley p. 138,
Greenland p. 138, Sequoia National Park p. 139, Grand Canyon p. 144, Andes
Mountains p. 148, Amazon River p. 148, Angel Falls p. 148, Lake Titicaca p. 149,
Galapagos Islands p. 149, Atacama Desert p. 149, Amazon Rainforest p. 152,
Antarctica p. 156, Arctic p. 158