THE 5 THEMES OF

GEOGRAPHY

THE FIVE THEMES OF

GEOGRAPHY

• Location

• Place

• Human-Environment Interaction

• Movement

• Regions

LOCATION

Where are we? • Absolute Location

– A latitude and longitude

(global location) or a

street address (local

location).

– Paris France is 48o North

Latitude and 2o East

Longitude.

– The White House is

located at 1600

Pennsylvania Ave.

• Relative Location

– Described by landmarks,

time, direction or

distance. From one place

to another.

– Go 1 mile west on main

street and turn left for 1

block.

PLACE

What is it like there, what kind of place is it?

• Human

Characteristics • What are the main

languages, customs, and

beliefs.

• How many people live,

work, and visit a place.

• Physical

Characteristics • Landforms (mountains,

rivers, etc.), climate,

vegitation, wildlife, soil, etc.

HUMAN-ENVIRONMENT

INTERACTION

• How do humans and the environment affect each other?

– We depend on it. • People depend on the Tennessee River for water and

transportation.

– We modify it. • People modify our environment by

heating and cooling buildings for comfort.

– We adapt to it. • We adapt to the environment by wearing

clothing suitable for summer (shorts) and

winter (coats), rain and shine.

MOVEMENT

• How are people, goods, ideas moved from place

to place?

– Human Movement

• Trucks, Trains, Planes

– Information Movement

• Phones, computer (email), mail

– Idea Movement

• How do fads move from place to place?

TV, Radio, Magazines

REGIONS

• How are Regions similar to and different from other

places?

– Formal Regions

• Regions defined by governmental or administrative boundaries (States,

Countries, Cities)

• Regions defined by similar characteristics (Corn Belt, Rocky Mountain

region, Chinatown).

– Functional Regions

• Regions defined by a function (newspaper service area, cell phone

coverage area).

– Vernacular Regions (Not in your book)

• Regions defined by peoples perception (middle east, the south, etc.)

Remembering the 5 themes

• If you can’t remember what they are

just ask MR. HELP!!!

• M – Movement

• R – Regions

• HE – Human Environment interaction

• L – Location

• P - Place

The 6 Essential Elements of Geo.

• 1. The World in Spatial Terms

• 2. Places and Regions

• 3. Physical Systems

• 4. Human Systems

• 5. Environment and Society

• 6. Uses of Geography

The 6 Essential Elements of Geo.

• Inside the 6 elements of Geography you will 18

national Geography standards that help to break

them down and make them more easily

understood and applied.

The 6 essential Elements of Geo.

• The World in Spatial Terms

• 1. How to use maps and other geographic representations,

tools, and technologies to acquire, process, and report

information from a spatial perspective.

• 2. How to use mental maps to organize information about

people, places, and environments in a spatial context.

• 3. How to analyze the spatial organization of people, places,

and environments on Earth's surface.

The 6 essential Elements of Geo.

• Places and Regions

• 4. The physical and human characteristics of places.

• 5. That people create regions to interpret Earth's

complexity.

• 6. How culture and experience influence people's

perceptions of places and regions.

The 6 essential Elements of Geo.

• Physical Systems

• 7. The physical processes that shape the patterns of Earth's

surface.

• 8. The characteristics and spatial distribution of ecosystems

on Earth's surface.

The 6 essential Elements of Geo.

• Human Systems

• 9. The characteristics, distribution, and migration of human populations on

Earth's surface.

• 10. The characteristics, distribution, and complexity of Earth's cultural

mosaics.

• 11. The patterns and networks of economic interdependence on Earth's

surface.

• 12. The processes, patterns, and functions of human settlement.

• 13. How the forces of cooperation and conflict among people influence the

division and control of Earth's surface.

The 6 essential Elements of Geo.

• Environment and Society

• 14. How human actions modify the physical environment.

• 15. How physical systems affect human systems.

• 16. The changes that occur in the meaning, use,

distribution, and importance of resources.

The 6 Essential Elements of Geo.

• Uses of Geography

• 17. How to apply geography to interpret he past.

• 18. How to apply geography to interpret the present and

plan for the future.

• Maps & Globes are the main tools, but geographers also use satellites and computer systems

• GPS (Global Positioning System)

– 24 satellites around the Earth transmit absolute location

• GIS (Geographic Information Systems)

– Use computer software to input information about a certain place (Ex. Species in a rainforest)

Tools of a Geographer

• Planning

– Ex. Natural disaster prevention

• Making Good Decisions

– Ex. Whether a new building should be built

• Managing Resources

– Ex. To locate resources; endangered

species/deforestation

Uses of Geography

Types of Maps

Goode’s Interrupted

Mercator

Other Types of Projections

Robinson Winkel Tripel

Types of Graphs

Identify the types below:

Five Themes of Geography

Difference between Latitude/Longitude

Prime Meridian & Equator

Difference between Absolute & Relative Location

Types of Projections

Types of Maps

Types of Graphs/Charts

Difference between General Purpose Maps & Special Purpose Maps

Landforms (just those on study guide)

Definition of Geography

Uses of Geography

Difference between GPS and GIS

Concepts to know for your test