Chapter 1 Study Guide
Teachers Guide
1. What is Geography?
Geography is the knowledge of the
world, its people, and the
landscapes they create…
What is Geography?
2. What are landscapes?
Physical
Landscapes
Human
Landscapes
Not created by
man
Created by man
Examples:
mountains, rivers
Examples: crops,
dams, roads,
cities, industries
3. Two Main Branches of Geography, p. 16 – 18 and PPT
Physical Geographers
People who study primarily physical
landscapes
Study: landforms, water (hydrology),
climate, meterology, biotic environment
(plants and animals), and soil
Geography
as a
Science, p. 5
Human Geographers
People who study primarily human
landscapes
Study: culture, economics, politics,
religions, transportation; immigration and
emigration, and more
Examples of job titles: urban, regional, and
environmental planners
Geography as
a Social
Science, p. 5
Physical Geography
Human Geography
Rocks and Minerals
Population
Landforms
Settlements
Soils
Economic Activities
Animals
Transportation
Plants
Recreational Activities
Water
Religion
Atmosphere
Political Systems
Rivers and Other Water Bodies
Social Traditions
Environment
Human Migration
Climate and Weather
Agricultural Systems
Oceans
Urban Systems
AND MORE…………
MORE………..
Slide 6
5. Physical Geography - in General
Studies
Want to
know causes
Why study
Earth's
features?
Why study
Earth's
changes?
Closely linked
to science
•Earth's physical features - its landforms, bodies of water, climates, soils, and
plants -- how they work and influence humans
•Why are some mountains still growing? Why are they located where they are?
•What causes rivers to flow North, South, East or West?
•Why are there different climates?
•By understanding of Earth's features and how they effect people, we can really
understand our world.
•Studying physical features allows geographers to see changes - such as the
damage caused by pollution
•Helps us prepare for those changes. Example: knowing what causes volcanoes
helps us to prepare for danger.
•To see if we can prevent the changes or slow them down. Example: global
warming.
•Studies Earth's physical features and how they work. Example: how it is shaped and
what is happening now.
•Studies Earth's surface such as plate tectonics; climate; glaciers
•1. What does the land look like? Are there tall mountains or is the land flat?
Examples of
Questions
•2. Is the land covered with snow? Is the ground covered with green
vegetation?
•3. Does the area experience tornados, hurricanes, or earthquakes?
•4. What kind of seasons does the area experience?
Slide 9
6. Human Geography – in General
A Social
Science
Studies
•Studies people and their relationships
•Relationships with other people
•Relationships humans have with Earth (environment)
•World's people, communities, culture...and interactions
•Geographers look at where people live and why. They look at why some parts of
Earth are more densely populated and why other parts of Earth have almost no
people living there at all.
•Human geographers study what people do: What are their jobs? What crops do
they grow? What makes them move from place to place?
Studies
Studies
•Studies how Earth’s features affect humans.
•Studies how humans affect Earth’s features.
•Studies governments and politics.
•Studies population; race and nationality; cities
•Studies culture: the language, religion, music, economy, government and other
cultural aspects
•Studies the history of how people have interacted with their environment, and
created culture.
Do people live in apartments or houses?
•2. Do most people own cars? Have telephones? Have Internet?
•3. What kinds of goods do they manufacture? What kinds of services do they
provide?
•4. How long do they live?
•5. How many people immigrate or emigrate?
•6. Where do people build cities and why?
•1.
Examples of
Questions
Slide 17
7. Ways Geographers Gather Data, p. 5 text
How do Physical Geographers gather data?
Some ways are:
1. Take detailed measurements of places like mountains or measurements of temperature.
2. Study satellite images.
3. Track changes over time.
4. Keep careful records.
How do Human Geographers gather data?
Some ways are:
1. Take detailed measurements of people’s interactions with each other, their government, their
religion or with their physical environment.
2. Study satellite images.
3. Track changes over time.
4. Keep careful records.
8. Study Branches of Geography – in Detail from PPT.
Branches of
Geography
Physical
Geography
Human
Geography
Cartography
Population
Geography
Hydrology
Political
Geography
Meteorology
Religion
Geography
And more
And more
9. Different Ways of Looking at the World.
PPT and p. 6 & 7
Ways of Looking at the
World
Local Level
Study a
neighborhood
or city’s local
foods,
housing,
clothing,
physical
landscape,
climate,
government…
Regional Level
Johnson
City
Regions are
larger parts
of the world
that has one
or more
common
features that
make it
different
from its
surroundings.
East
Tennessee,
Chinatown
in San
Francisco,
or even as
big as
America!
Global
Regional
Local
Global Level
Studying the
whole world is
difficult, so
geographers
divide their
study into
regions. A
smaller area is
easier to
examine than
a large area.
Sometimes
geographers what
to see the “whole
picture.” They
want to learn how
people interact
globally. They
study how events
and ideas from one
regions of the
world affect people
in other regions.
10. Tools Geographers Use p. 8-9, 15
Maps
Globes
• Maps are flat
drawings that
shows all or
part to
Earth’s
surface.
• a spherical,
or ballshaped,
model of
Earth. A
globe shows
the world as
it really is.
Advantages:
1. Easier to work with
than globes.
2. Shows more
information like cities
in a state.
3. Less expensive to
make.
4. Easier to carry
around.
5. Can show more
information like land
use and city streets.
6. Special purpose
maps can show such
things as languages of
the world … like land
use …like oil trade
Advantage:
1. Most perfect
representation of
Earth.
Disadvantage:
Distortion: Think of
the peel of an orange.
Disadvantage:
1. Difficult to carry
around and see things
up close.
Technological
Tools
• Satellites
• There are
many types
of satellite
images: true
color and
infrared.
• GIS and GPS
True color satellite images are
like photographs taken from high
above Earth’s surface. The
colors in these images are similar
to what you would see from the
ground. Vegetation, for example,
appears green.
Infrared satellite images are
taken with a special type of light.
These images show heat patterns,
so the colors on the maps are
different. Bodies of water, for
example, appear black since they
give of little heat. (See page 15
green book). Whereas,
vegetation might be red because it
gives off heat.
Remember: Maps and
Globes are really
technological tools as well.
GPS
GIS
• Global Positioning
System
• This is a set of 24-29
satellites orbiting
Earth.
• With the information
from these satellites,
GPS unit can calculate
position (longitude and
latitude), speed, trip
distance, distance to
destination, sunrise
and sunset time and
more. GPS technology
is also used for
exploration,
navigation, and
surveying.
• Geographic
Information System
• a technological tool
that allows
geographers to make
complex maps. These
complex maps help
geographers learn
more and helps them
make intelligent
decisions.
• GIS is a computer
program that overlaps
and combines several
kinds of maps (like
population, landforms,
and political) and into
one map.