Chile is a land of earthquakes, volcanoes, and natural disasters. Compare the geographical conditions that result in their frequent occurrences. Compare those with the Western coast of the United States. Have students predict other areas of the world prone to earthquakes and volcanoes, and then research to check the accuracy of their predictions.

Research the famous natural disasters in Chile and compare the economic/cultural impacts with famous disasters in the U.S.

Neruda Self-Portrait - EARLs Reading 1.2; Writing 1,3; Communication 2

Introduce students to Neruda's Self -portrait poem (Autorretrato - see Resources). Have students make their own lists of self-characteristics (appearance, passions, likes, dislikes, etc.). Have students edit their pieces for word choice and imagery. Possible extension might be to take a picture of each student and scan into a computer. Have students word process their self-portrait and print out on top of their picture.

Geography - EARLs Geography 1,2,3

Chile extends about 3,000 miles down the West coast of South America. Its geographical conditions represent a mirror image of those that exist in the Northern hemisphere from Baja California to Alaska. Have students discover this by researching and comparing geographic and climatic conditions at equivalent latitudes. Where are the big cities located? What are the economic activities that prevail in corresponding regions? What environmental issues are common to equivalent regions?

Poetry - EARLs Communication 2, Writing 1,2; Reading 1,2,3; Arts 1,2,3,4

Introduce students to Neruda's poem "Ode a La Sandia." (See translation) Have them identify the metaphors used by Neruda. As a group, pick one fruit and brainstorm possible metaphors. In pairs or individually, have students pick a favorite fruit and develops 3 metaphors for their own odes. Students will then construct a multi-layer collage of their particular fruit to be mounted in the center of a large paper. Odes will be written on the outside of the collage in black permanent ink. (see example)

Salmon - EARLs Science 1,4,5; Communication 1,2; Economics 1

There are no native anadromous fish (those that begin and end their lives in fresh water, but live the bulk of their lives in salt water) in Chile. Despite this, two species of salmon have been successfully introduced--the Pacific Silver salmon an the Atlantic salmon. Have students research and compare the environmental issues connected with salmon production in the Pacific Northwest and in Chile.

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