The Five Themes of Geography

When we talk about the five themes of geography, we are trying to understand a particular place.

• Location: Position on the Earth's Surface (Absolute/Relative). .
• Place: Physical and Human Characteristics.
• Human/Environment Interactions: Shaping the Landscape.
• Movement: Humans Interacting on the Earth.
• Regions: How They Form and Change

Location�There are pretty much two ways to describe the location of a place. Think of it like a the directions to a place or a place’s address

• Relative�This is where a place is in relation to the places around it.�Examples >> Next to Taco Bell, at the mouth of Congo River, in northwestern Africa, along the Mediterranean Coast, between Chad and Sudan.

Location�There are pretty much two ways to describe the location of a place. Think of it like a the directions to a place or a place’s address

• Absolute�Think of this as the address of place. We use absolute locations to find a place even when we don’t know anything about its location.�This is done with longitude and latitude. Where two lines cross, that’s a place.�The entry to the junior high school is located at 43.829288 degrees North Latitude and 111.869375 West Longitude. You can type that into a mapping program and find the entrance to our school. You don’t need any other information.

Location�There are pretty much two ways to describe the location of a place. Think of it like a the directions to a place or a place’s address

• However, if you are traveling to a location, sometimes it’s nice to have someone tell you the relative location. Like a real person, or Siri.

Place

• Geographers study this geography theme by looking at the characteristics that distinguish one place from another place on Earth.
• These physical and human characteristics can include landforms, waterways, people, climate, languages, communication, and transportation.

Place

• The physical place�Think of this as what you would experience were you in that place.�Landforms, vegetation, climate – pretty much anything that is natural.
• The human part of the place�Think of this as what people have done, and are doing in that place.�Language, buildings, religion, roads, factories, agriculture – these are all examples of place.

Human / Environment Interaction

• This is related to place, but it deals more with the effects of people on a place.

Human / Environment Interaction

• This deals with the way humans interact positively and negatively with their environment.
• It includes study the lasting effects these interactions may have on a place.�Think about watering a lawn, building a dam, planting a tree, building a landfill, irrigating crops, tilling soil – these are all forms of interaction.
• These interactions usually support or damage an environment.

Movement�How and why do we travel?

• We are always on the move, but this theme of geography is not just about people moving from one place to another in cars and airplanes. �Movement also deals with how and why people travel from one place to another. Do we travel for work, to be near our families, to escape war?

Movement�How and why do we travel?

• We also move products and resources when they are transported from one region or place to another. �This includes manufactured products, crops, and oil.�Think about potatoes from Idaho being shipped to Arizona in a semi-truck. Where did the truck come from? Where does its fuel come from? How did the fuel get to Idaho?

Movement�How and why do we travel?

• Movement also includes the movement of ideas. This is especially important when we talk about technology. We exchange ideas, news, fashion trends, and all sorts of things by technology.
• What about our language? That’s always changing too.

Region�What characteristics does one place share with its neighbors?

• A region is a unit on the earth's surface that has unifying characteristics such as climate or industry. These characteristics may be human, physical, or cultural. Not only do geographers study characteristics, but they also study how regions around the world may change over time.

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Region�What characteristics does one place share with its neighbors?

• Different types of physical regions are deserts, mountains, grasslands, and rain forests. In a city or town, there may be commercial or business regions and then residential regions.

Region�What characteristics does one place share with its neighbors?

• For example, in the United States, we commonly identify the Rocky Mountains as a region. Those states that are located along the slopes of the Rocky Mountains have similar climates and grow similar crops. In addition many people who live there have similar outdoor interests. This makes the areas along the slopes of the Rocky Mountains a region.

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• Thanks to brighthubeducation for some great definitions from which to start!