“WHAT ARE THE FIVE THEMES OF GEOGRAPHY?” - VIDEO WORKSHEET
1. List the five themes of geography. I have given you their first letter.
Location
Place
Human Environment Interaction (also called “Relationships Within Places”)
Movement
Region
2. Paris, France is located at 49N / 2E. This is an example of absolute location.
3. What is the relative location of New Orleans, LA? Near the mouth of the Mississippi River
4. Each PLACE has physical and human characteristics.
5. Give 2 examples of a Physical Characteristic and 2 examples of a Human Characteristic.
Physical Characteristics
Rock formations at the Grand Canyon
Lush vegetation in Hawaii
Indiginous wildlife in Australia
Human Characteristics
The Great Pyramids in Egypt
The Eiffel Tower in Paris
The “Hollywood” sign in California
Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor
Empire State Building in New York City
The Colosseum in Rome
The Great Wall of China
Easter Island Statues
6. Humans Interact with their Environment in three ways: Adapt, Modify/Change, Damage
a. How have humans adapted to their environment? clothes we wear, houses we build
b. How have humans modified or changed their environment? cutting through mountains
to create roads and tunnels, to irrigate land for farming
c. How have people damaged or negatively impacted their environment? clearing millions
of acres of rainforest, causing pollution with the cars we drive, because of dams
built along the Colorado River some areas have become dried out, using fertilizer
on our lawns (ends up in rivers, lakes, and streams), using salt on roads
7. Besides goods, what else can be moved? people and ideas
8. Examples of methods of transportation. truck, plane, train, automobile, ship, computer
(ideas can move through the internet, email, television, phone, and fax)
9. An area with one or more common characteristics is called a Region.
10. Examples of REGIONS. Continent, Country, Caribbean Basin, Wine Region in France
Cornbelt (a farming region in the USA), Scandinavia,
North Africa, Mediterranean, Northeast Asia
Use the information from the video or Chapter 1 of your textbook to define the following terms.
Definition – in your own words
Five Themes of
Geography
LOCATION
Describes where something is, using absolute and relative location
PLACE
Describes features that make a site unique, using physical (natural
features) and human characteristics (things constructed by humans)
The relationship within people and places. People interact with their
HUMAN AND
ENVIRONMENTAL environments in many ways: the homes we build, the clothes we
wear, the crops we grow.
INTERACTION
MOVEMENT
REGION
How and why people, goods and ideas move. Methods of movement
include: ship, truck, train, plane, computer, phone, and fax. An
example of movement is how the Latin language spread because of
the conquests of the Roman Empire.
Areas that share common characteristics. Examples include
Caribbean, Southwest United States, Scandinavia, Amazon
Use your definitions and information from the video and text to identify which theme of geography
the following examples fit.
1. HEI People in the American southwest use air conditioners in their homes.
2. R The nations of the Pacific Rim include Japan, Taiwan, Korea, and China.
3. L The Mississippi River flows through the midsection of the United States.
4. HEI Buffalo herds once roamed the Great Plains of the United States.
5. HEI Humans often change their surroundings.
6. M
People, goods, and ideas came to America from other parts of the world.
7. R The world has many areas that have something in common.
8. L
My house is next to the school.
9. P
All locations have physical and cultural characteristics.
10. M R The Islamic religion can be found throughout the world.