Russia, the world's largest country in the world, can be found on both Asia and Europe(1/8 of the world's surface and twice the size of the United States!) Covering 11 time zones(the US covers 4), Russia is a major producer of gold, silver , diamonds , oil and natural gas. Use this cyberhunt and activities to learn about Russia.

1. http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/cia03/russia_sm03.gif
   Look at the map of Russia and find the city which is closest to Lake Baikal?
   Which sea is located to the north of Russia? To the East ? Both the Volga River and the River flow into what landlocked sea?
   Which city is closer to the west: Saint Petersburg or Moscow?
   What is the northern most city in Russia which touches the Barents Sea?
   Why isn't the city of Astrakhan NOT a good seaport?
   
2. http://www.f8.com/FP/Russia/R09b.html
   Formed 25 million years ago, Lake Baikal is the worldıs oldest and the world's deepest lake. What is its record depth and about how much of the earth's fresh water is found in the lake?
3. http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/Europeweb/factfile/Unique-facts-Europe4.htm
   With more than 70 species of fish and 8 hydroelectric plants, the Volga is an important waterway. The Volga is the The Volga River of Russia is the _______ in Europe. What is the length of the river? What are two uses of the Volga River's many reservoirs?
4. http://mbgnet.mobot.org/sets/tundra/index.htm
   Much of Russia's northernmost land , called tundra, is often frozen year round.
   It's called _____, the temperatures in the winter can reach a low of _______and in the summer only reach____
5. http://mbgnet.mobot.org/sets/taiga/index.htm
   In what way have the tree covered area of Russia, called Taiga, adapted to protect themselves against wildfires? Because of the cold temperatures, what takes place slowly and what is the result to trees?
6. http://www.tiscali.co.uk/reference/encyclopaedia/hutchinson/m0014756.html
   With the Caucasus, the Urals , the Sayan and Allay, Russia has nine major mountain ranges. The Ural Mountains are used for what purpose on a map? What is the highest peak in the Urals where in Russia are they located?
7. http://www.factmonster.com/ce6/world/A0849291.html/
   The longest continuous railroad on the earth, the Trans-Siberian Railroad covers how many miles?
   The train goes from Moscow to which city?


Activites:




1. Intricately decorated jeweled eggs , first made for the royal family in the 1880s by Peter Carl Faberge ,opened to reveal treasures. Draw a Faberge egg. Check out this site to see some of the beautiful eggs.
http://www.atozcollections.com/faberge-01.htm
2. Read a Russian folkstory such as the Frog Princess (Tsarevna Frog)
Other Russian folkstories can be found at:
3. Also listen to music of famed Russian composer, Tchaikovsky.
http://www.me.uvic.ca/~zdong/sdweb/tchaikov.htm
4. Make pierogi, a food from Russia
http://www.recipeslist.com/sidedishes-recipes-list/cheeserecipes-recipes-list/perogies-recipe-for-free.html
5. Find a copy of the Russian alphabete(Cyrillic) and have students try and write their name and a brief sentence using the Cryillic letters.
http://www.pbs.org/weta/faceofrussia/reference/cyrillic.html