New Curriculum First Term Geography examination for SS 1

Class: SSS 1
Term: First Term
Subject: Geography
Time: 2 hours
Total Marks: 70

SECTION A — OBJECTIVE TEST (40 MARKS)
Instruction: Answer ALL 40 questions. Each question carries 1 mark. Choose the most appropriate option (a)–(d).

1. A state needs to interpret satellite images to monitor deforestation. Identify the professional it should engage. (a) meteorologist (b) remote-sensing analyst (c) urban planner (d) land surveyor
2. A city on Earth's sunlit hemisphere experiences daytime while another city faces away from the Sun. The direct cause is ________. (a) the annual change in Earth's orbital position alone (b) the Moon's rotation around the Sun (c) Earth's rotation (d) the length of the rainy season
3. When a ship recedes, its hull disappears before its mast. What does this observation help demonstrate? (a) Earth stopping its rotation (b) Mars lying between Earth and Venus (c) Earth's curved surface (d) the Sun moving around Earth each day
4. Which ordering gives the planets from the Sun correctly? (a) Mercury, Mars, Venus, Earth, Saturn, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune (b) Venus, Mercury, Earth, Jupiter, Mars, Saturn, Neptune, Uranus (c) Earth, Venus, Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune (d) Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
5. A traveller needs to compare the relative locations of several Nigerian states. Which tool offers the most direct overview? (a) an atlas of Nigeria (b) a laboratory thermometer (c) a soil sieve (d) an audio recorder
6. A valley lies between two hills, and a stream flows through it. Which observations concern relief and drainage respectively? (a) The hills and valley; the stream (b) The road; the school boundary (c) The stream; the soil colour (d) The vegetation; the temperature
7. During an equinox, how are daylight and night-time approximately distributed across the globe? (a) 24 hours of darkness everywhere (b) daylight lasting the same as a season (c) 24 hours of daylight everywhere (d) about 12 hours each
8. A council maps recurrent flooding before building a health centre. What benefit of geography is being demonstrated? (a) developing new clothing sizes (b) printing certificates (c) settlement planning and risk reduction (d) choosing a school's examination timetable
9. Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars are marked in sequence from the Sun. Name the next planet outward. (a) Uranus (b) Neptune (c) Saturn (d) Jupiter
10. A research team investigates how a river valley shapes settlement and transport. Identify the geographical branches this combines. (a) physical and human geography (b) population counting and music theory (c) weather measurement and web development (d) astronomy and chemistry only
11. Which finding would add independent support to the conclusion that Earth is spherical? (a) An identical time everywhere on Earth (b) Photographs of Earth from space showing its curved outline (c) A single straight road across a town (d) The size of a classroom globe's stand
12. Which effect is most closely connected with Earth's revolution and axial tilt? (a) The daily sunrise and sunset cycle (b) A four-hour difference per 60° longitude (c) A change of hour with every 15° of longitude (d) The annual progression of seasons
13. The strongest geographical reason to study a town's land use before building a road is to ________. (a) ensure that every road follows a river bed (b) make all neighbourhoods identical (c) anticipate impacts on settlements, drainage and access (d) avoid consulting any map
14. A learner labels Saturn closer to the Sun than Jupiter. The correct step is to ________. (a) place Jupiter before Saturn in the outward sequence (b) move Earth beyond Neptune (c) remove the Sun from the diagram (d) place Mercury after Uranus
15. The Earth turns through 30° of longitude. Calculate the corresponding local solar-time difference. (a) 12 hours (b) 30 minutes (c) 4 hours (d) 2 hours
16. Which pair correctly matches a career and its task? (a) Land surveyor — predicting students' examination scores (b) Cartographer — prescribing medicines (c) Urban planner — assessing competing land uses for a growing town (d) Meteorologist — certifying building ownership
17. Which observation most directly separates a planet from the Sun in the solar-system model? (a) A planet orbits the Sun rather than being its central star (b) A planet must produce all its own light (c) A planet must be larger than Jupiter (d) A planet remains fixed in the sky
18. Why is a globe generally a better model than a flat map for showing the overall shape of Earth? (a) eliminates the need for compass directions (b) shows Earth’s overall shape with less planar distortion (c) displays daily weather automatically (d) provides street-level detail of every village
19. A settlement sketch records the direction that a nearby hillside slopes. Explain why this helps with drainage planning. (a) show the number of school subjects (b) help explain where rainwater may flow (c) establish the precise age of a rock (d) replace every river symbol with text
20. Which enquiry belongs most clearly to regional geography? (a) Comparing climate, land use and settlement across the Niger Delta (b) Measuring only the classroom's desk length (c) Calculating the mass of a rock in a laboratory (d) Naming one instrument that measures wind
21. The ________ is positioned between Saturn and Neptune in the eight-planet model. (a) Jupiter (b) Mars (c) Uranus (d) Venus
22. The main reason seasons differ between the northern and southern hemispheres is ________. (a) the Earth moving in and out of its own shadow (b) the orientation of Earth's tilted axis during its yearly orbit (c) the Earth stopping its rotation twice a year (d) the Moon covering each hemisphere in turn
23. A fieldwork student needs to orient a settlement sketch to north. Name the most useful instrument. (a) compass (b) anemometer (c) barometer (d) rain gauge
24. The ________ would be most likely to turn GPS observations into a reliable site-boundary map. (a) climatologist alone (b) land surveyor (c) fashion designer (d) literary critic
25. Which situation best demonstrates geography helping public health? (a) Counting laboratory chairs without location data (b) Mapping homes near unsafe water points to plan intervention (c) Changing the colour of clinic uniforms (d) Choosing a school anthem
26. ________ is the branch concerned mainly with landscapes, landforms and natural processes. (a) Human geography (b) Political history (c) Digital storytelling (d) Physical geography
27. ________ is the planet positioned immediately between Earth and Jupiter. (a) Venus (b) Saturn (c) Mercury (d) Mars
28. Which field note provides the strongest observable evidence of a physical feature? (a) Everyone prefers the western road (b) The town is the nicest place in Nigeria (c) A rocky ridge rises above the stream to the east (d) The stream is important because it is famous
29. All the following may support the spherical-Earth explanation EXCEPT ________. (a) the way distant ships disappear below the horizon (b) changes in visible stars with latitude (c) the claim that every point on Earth sees the same stars (d) images of Earth's curved limb
30. Which change in location would generally make local solar noon occur earlier? (a) Moving westward by the same amount (b) Moving south only along one meridian (c) Moving north only along one meridian (d) Moving eastward in longitude
31. The main reason several independent observations are valuable in studying Earth's shape is that ________. (a) each observation must make Earth a different shape (b) different evidence can support the same model rather than relying on one claim (c) a ship's journey always proves Earth's exact diameter (d) a globe replaces all field observations
32. All are geographical lines of enquiry EXCEPT ________. (a) mapping population density (b) studying transport routes between towns (c) studying changes in crop yield without considering place or environmental conditions (d) examining river drainage patterns
33. Which event is NOT primarily an effect of Earth's revolution? (a) seasonal shifts in the amount of daylight (b) the daily alternation of day and night (c) the annual occurrence of solstices (d) the annual cycle of equinoxes
34. Which of these is NOT correctly positioned in the solar-system sequence? (a) Neptune lies between Earth and Mars (b) Venus lies between Mercury and Earth (c) Jupiter lies beyond Mars (d) Mars lies beyond Earth
35. All of these are uses of geographical knowledge EXCEPT ________. (a) identifying flood-prone areas (b) planning transport connections (c) proving a person's character from their home address (d) locating health services
36. Which of these is NOT usually a primary geographical responsibility? (a) producing land-use maps (b) diagnosing a patient without considering disease distribution (c) studying climate trends (d) assessing flood exposure
37. All are linked to Earth's rotation EXCEPT ________. (a) the annual cycle of solstices (b) day and night (c) differences in local time (d) the apparent daily movement of the Sun
38. Which statement about Earth's shape is most accurate for the taught model? (a) Earth is approximately spherical, slightly flattened at the poles (b) Earth is exactly a cube (c) Earth is a perfectly flat disk (d) Earth has sharp rectangular sides
39. Which pair correctly matches a geographical tool to its use? (a) Globe — recording daily rainfall automatically (b) Atlas — measuring air humidity directly (c) Compass — displaying satellite vegetation maps (d) Remote sensing — observing features from distant sensors
40. All are physical-environment observations EXCEPT ________. (a) the type of surface soil (b) the shape of a nearby hill (c) the flow direction of a stream (d) the number of shares on a student's post

SECTION B — THEORY (30 MARKS)
Instruction: Answer Question 1 and any other TWO questions. Each question carries 10 marks. Show calculations or reasoning clearly where required.

Question 1
(a) Explain the differences between physical, human and regional geography, giving a relevant investigation for each. (6 marks)
(b) Identify two geographical tools and explain why each suits a fieldwork task. (4 marks)

Question 2
(a) A town floods whenever heavy rain reaches a built-up valley. Explain how two observations of local physical geography could guide safer planning. (6 marks)
(b) Identify two geography-related careers and match each to a useful planning task. (4 marks)

Question 3
(a) Present the planets in correct order from the Sun, and state the Earth’s position. (5 marks)
(b) Explain two independent observations supporting Earth’s approximately spherical shape. (5 marks)

Question 4
(a) Distinguish the rotation and revolution of Earth, including the approximate duration of each. (6 marks)
(b) Explain the different effects of rotation and of revolution with Earth’s axial tilt. (4 marks)

Objective Marking Scheme
Question 1 – ✅ (b) remote-sensing analyst
Question 2 – ✅ (c) Earth's rotation
Question 3 – ✅ (c) Earth's curved surface
Question 4 – ✅ (d) Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
Question 5 – ✅ (a) an atlas of Nigeria
Question 6 – ✅ (a) The hills and valley; the stream
Question 7 – ✅ (d) about 12 hours each
Question 8 – ✅ (c) settlement planning and risk reduction
Question 9 – ✅ (d) Jupiter
Question 10 – ✅ (a) physical and human geography
Question 11 – ✅ (b) Photographs of Earth from space showing its curved outline
Question 12 – ✅ (d) The annual progression of seasons
Question 13 – ✅ (c) anticipate impacts on settlements, drainage and access
Question 14 – ✅ (a) place Jupiter before Saturn in the outward sequence
Question 15 – ✅ (d) 2 hours
Question 16 – ✅ (c) Urban planner — assessing competing land uses for a growing town
Question 17 – ✅ (a) A planet orbits the Sun rather than being its central star
Question 18 – ✅ (b) shows Earth’s overall shape with less planar distortion
Question 19 – ✅ (b) help explain where rainwater may flow
Question 20 – ✅ (a) Comparing climate, land use and settlement across the Niger Delta
Question 21 – ✅ (c) Uranus
Question 22 – ✅ (b) the orientation of Earth's tilted axis during its yearly orbit
Question 23 – ✅ (a) compass
Question 24 – ✅ (b) land surveyor
Question 25 – ✅ (b) Mapping homes near unsafe water points to plan intervention
Question 26 – ✅ (d) Physical geography
Question 27 – ✅ (d) Mars
Question 28 – ✅ (c) A rocky ridge rises above the stream to the east
Question 29 – ✅ (c) the claim that every point on Earth sees the same stars
Question 30 – ✅ (d) Moving eastward in longitude
Question 31 – ✅ (b) different evidence can support the same model rather than relying on one claim
Question 32 – ✅ (c) studying changes in crop yield without considering place or environmental conditions
Question 33 – ✅ (b) the daily alternation of day and night
Question 34 – ✅ (a) Neptune lies between Earth and Mars
Question 35 – ✅ (c) proving a person's character from their home address
Question 36 – ✅ (b) diagnosing a patient without considering disease distribution
Question 37 – ✅ (a) the annual cycle of solstices
Question 38 – ✅ (a) Earth is approximately spherical, slightly flattened at the poles
Question 39 – ✅ (d) Remote sensing — observing features from distant sensors
Question 40 – ✅ (d) the number of shares on a student's post

Theory Marking Scheme
Question 1
(a) Physical natural features (2); human activities/settlements (2); regional integrated area study (2), examples integrated. (6 marks)
(b) Appropriate named tool and matched application ×2 each: map/atlas, compass, GPS, remote sensing, globe. (4 marks)

Question 2
(a) Relief/slope and runoff explained (3); river/drainage/floodplain evidence explained (3). (6 marks)
(b) Any two accurate career–task matches ×2, e.g. surveyor, cartographer, urban planner, meteorologist. (4 marks)

Question 3
(a) Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune (4 for correct order), Earth third (1). (5 marks)
(b) Curved horizon/ship disappearance, changes in visible stars, space images, Earth’s shadow: two explained (2+3). (5 marks)

Question 4
(a) Rotation about axis ~24h (3); revolution around Sun ~365¼ days (3). (6 marks)
(b) Day/night/local time due rotation (2); seasons/equinoxes/solstices from tilt plus revolution (2). (4 marks)