The 5 Themes of Geography
Geography is a the canvas that history is painted on
Geography Warm Up
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).
• Relative
Location
• Described by landmarks,
time, direction or distance.
From one place to another.
Absolute Location
Location
• Absolute Location
• Montville is located at 40 N, 74W
• Montville is in Morris County
• Montville is located in the Northern Hemisphere
• Relative Location
• Montville is located 30 minutes from New York City
• Montville is located near Fairfield
• Montville is North of Atlantic City
PLACE
What is it like there, what kind of place is it?
• Human
• Physical
Characteristics
Characteristics
• What are the main
languages, customs, and
beliefs.
• How many people live,
work, and visit a place.
• Landforms (mountains,
rivers, etc.), climate,
vegitation, wildlife, soil,
etc.
Physical Characteristics
• Specific to THAT place, not generic.
• The way a place looks.
• Created by nature.
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Mountains
Rivers, Lakes, Seas
Climate
Vegetation
• Examples:
•
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Andes Mountains are in South America.
Amazon River flows through Brazil.
Pampas are located in Argentina.
The isthmus of Panama connects Central & South America.
Cultural Characteristics
• Specific to THAT place, not generic.
• Peoples activities change the way a place looks or is represented.
• Man-made or invented.
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Language
Unique buildings
Religious Practices
Celebrations/traditions/holidays
• Examples:
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Portuguese is the official language of Brazil.
Many Mexicans are Catholic.
Mayan ruins are located in Mexico.
Cinco de Mayo is a national holiday in Mexico.
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.
HEI
• Give examples of the following
• Positive HEI
• Negative HEI
• Accidental HEI
• Destructive HEI
• Current HEI
• Climate Change, Energy Resources, Natural Resource
Conservation, Deforestation
MOVEMENT = Globalization
• 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
Region
• The world is divided into different regions
based upon similarities & differences.
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•
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•
•
Climate
Location
Beliefs
Languages
Ethnicity/Race
• Types:
• Formal
• Functional
• Perceptual
Formal Region
• Most common/familiar.
• Determined by the distribution of a uniform
characteristic (physical or cultural)
• Location
• Climate
• Religion
• Examples
• Central America (Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Panama)
• Latin America (spanish-speaking nations)
• Tropics (countries located near equator)
Functional Region
• Serves a purpose that affects places around
it.
• Distributes goods/people
• Serves specific purpose
• Examples:
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Panama Canal
Amazon River Basin
Hollywood
Havana, Cuba
Perceptual Region
• Groups of areas that provoke a certain stereotype or
feeling.
• Examples:
• The Bronx
• The “ghetto”
• China town
Remembering the 5 themes
• If you can’t remembering what
they are just ask MR. HELP!!!
• M – Movement
• R – Regions
• HE – Human Environment interaction
• L – Location
• P - Place
Where was this picture taken?
Proof ?
Which of the 5 themes do you
think is most important