2. What ar e t he f i ve
t hemes?
Tool s geogr apher ’ s use t o
st udy f eat ur es on ear t h.
– Locat i on
– Pl ace
– Movement
– Regi on
– Human Envi r onment I nt er act i on
3. Locat i on
Descr i bes wher e somet hi ng i s l ocat ed.
Types of Locat i on:
– ABSOLUTE: exact l ocat i on on ear t h ( f i xed)
• Doesn’ t change
– Lat i t ude/ Longi t ude
– Hemi spher es
– Addr ess
– RELATI VE: compar ed t o ot her pl aces
( var i abl e)
• Changes dependent upon wher e you’ r e
compar i ng i t t o.
– Mi l es
– Di st ance
– Di r ect i on
4. Absol ut e Locat i on
Exampl es:
– Rome i s l ocat ed at 41 N, 12 E
– Ar gent i na i s l ocat ed i n t he
sout her n hemi spher e
– Ecuador i s l ocat ed i n Tr opi c of
Cancer .
5. Rel at i ve Locat i on
Exampl es:
– Rome i s l ocat ed near t he
Medi t er r anean Sea.
– Ar gent i na i s near Br azi l .
– Ecuador i s sout h of Mexi co.
6. Pl ace
Descr i bes t he human and
physi cal char act er i st i cs of a
l ocat i on.
– Physi cal char act er i st i cs
– Human char act er i st i cs
7. Physi cal
Char act er i st i cs
Speci f i c t o THAT pl ace, not gener i c.
– The way a pl ace l ooks.
Cr eat ed by nat ur e.
– Mount ai ns
– Ri ver s, Lakes, Seas
– Cl i mat e
– Veget at i on
Exampl es:
– Andes Mount ai ns ar e i n Sout h Amer i ca.
– Amazon Ri ver f l ows t hr ough Br azi l .
– Pampas ar e l ocat ed i n Ar gent i na.
– The i st hmus of Panama connect s Cent r al &
Sout h Amer i ca.
8. Human Char act er i st i cs
Speci f i c t o THAT pl ace, not gener i c.
– Peopl es act i vi t i es change t he way a pl ace
l ooks or i s r epr esent ed.
Man- made or i nvent ed.
– Language
– Uni que bui l di ngs
– Rel i gi ous Pr act i ces
– Cel ebr at i ons/ t r adi t i ons/ hol i days
Exampl es:
– Por t uguese i s t he of f i ci al l anguage of
Br azi l .
– Many Mexi cans ar e Cat hol i c.
– Mayan r ui ns ar e l ocat ed i n Mexi co.
– Ci nco de Mayo i s a nat i onal hol i day i n
9. Movement
I deas, f ads, goods, r esour ces, and
communi cat i on al l t r avel di st ances.
Thi s t heme st udi es movement and
mi gr at i on acr oss t he pl anet .
Exampl es
– I mmi gr at i on f r om Lat i n Amer i ca t o US.
– War i n I r aq ( t r oops, suppl i es, i deas,
peopl e)
– Myspace, Facebook ( i deas)
– Count r y musi c now i s popul ar i n Chi na
and Japan
10. Regi on
Regi on di vi des t he wor l d i nt o
manageabl e uni t s f or geogr aphi c st udy.
Regi ons have some sor t of
char act er i st i c t hat uni f i es t he ar ea.
– Cl i mat e
– Locat i on
– Bel i ef s
– Languages
– Et hni ci t y/ Race
Types:
– For mal
– Funct i onal
– Per cept ual
11. For mal Regi on
Most common/ f ami l i ar .
Det er mi ned by t he di st r i but i on of
a uni f or m char act er i st i c
( physi cal or cul t ur al )
– Locat i on
– Cl i mat e
– Rel i gi on
Exampl es
– Cent r al Amer i ca ( Mexi co, Guat emal a,
Ni car agua, Panama)
– Lat i n Amer i ca ( spani sh- speaki ng nat i ons)
– Tr opi cs ( count r i es l ocat ed near equat or )
12. Funct i onal Regi on
Ser ves a pur pose t hat af f ect s
pl aces ar ound i t .
– Di st r i but es goods/ peopl e
– Ser ves speci f i c pur pose
Exampl es:
– Panama Canal
– Amazon Ri ver Basi n
– Hol l ywood
– Havana, Cuba
13. Per cept ual Regi on
Gr oups of ar eas t hat pr ovoke
a cer t ai n st er eot ype or
f eel i ng.
Exampl es:
– The Br onx
– The “ ghet t o”
– Chi na t own
14. Human Envi r onment
I nt er act i on
Thi s t heme consi der s how humans adapt
t o and modi f y t he envi r onment . Humans
shape t he l andscape t hr ough t hei r
i nt er act i on wi t h t he l and; t hi s has
bot h posi t i ve and negat i ve ef f ect s on
t he envi r onment . Consequences t o t hose
act i ons depend upon how peopl e choose
t o i nt er act wi t h t he wor l d and use
t hei r r esour ces.
15. HEI
Cur r ent Envi r oment al I ssues:
– Cl i mat e Change ( gl obal war mi ng)
– Ener gy Resour ces
– Wat er Conser vat i on
– Def or est at i on
