Virginia Fitzgerald
Webquest Assignment
The Five Themes of Geography
7th Grade World Studies
Goal: To become re-familiarized with the five themes of geography and how each relates to the
study of geography.
A Webquest of the Five Themes of Geography
So, what are the five themes of geography? And how do these themes relate to the study of
geography? This webquest will help you review the five themes of geography.
Review of Five Themes
Watch the video to get an overview of the themes, and answer the questions.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sa5lVoT1OuQ&NR=1
What is the
mnemonic for the five
themes (that is, what
is the word or phrase
to help you remember
the five themes)?
What does each letter
of it stand for (in
other words, what are
the names of the five
themes)? List them
in the order that
they appear in the
mnemonic.
Summary of Five Themes
Watch – and listen to - the video, then answer the following questions with the information the
video provides. Caution: Be ready to pause, if needed, to catch everything.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AIqC79WrpKg .
What does location
tell you?
What question does
the video ask about
place?
What gets around?
What two questions
are asked about
human-environment
interaction?
What do regions have
in common (give the
first 4 mentioned)?
Exploring Location
Read the paragraphs below the blue & gray world map, and answer the questions.
http://www.worldatlas.com/aatlas/imageg.htm .
What are the two
types of location, and
what is an example of
each?
What are the two
elements in the main
coordinate system
used for absolute
location? (Each is
measured in degrees,
minutes, and
seconds.)
Now, on the right side of the web page, below where it says “Quickly find the latitude and
longitude,” click on the hyperlink, which will take you to a page titled “Latitude and Longitude
Finder”.
In the box just a few lines below those words, type in “Detroit, Michigan” and click on the
button labeled “Submit”.
The coordinates for Detroit will appear, and a map will appear just below the coordinates. Use
the coordinates and map and to answer the questions.
What is the latitude
and longitude of
Detroit, Michigan?
Zoom out a bit so you
can see all fo
Michigan. Which
direction must you go
to get from Detroit to
Traverse City. (That
is, what is Traverse
City's relative
location to Detroit?)
Remember, in
geography we use
compass directions
not up or down or left
or right.
And what is
Chicago's relative
location to Detroit?
Exploring Place
Place describes the human and physical characteristics of a location. Use this website:
http://education.nationalgeographic.com/education/ .
Look for the section of the National geographic Education oage that says “Mapping. Click on the
hyperlink that says “MapMaker Interactive.” Once the page loads, click and drag the map so that
the United States is centered in the map window. We will use the "Add a Layer" feature to get
different information from the map.. Note: if the key is not shown, click on the little i.)
Go the Earth systems
layers. Which tectonic
plate is most of the U.S.
(including Utah) on?
Hint: Use legend tab on
the right.
Remove this layer when
done.
Go to Earth systems layer
again. What elevation (in
feet) is most of the United
States lower than?
Remove this layer when
done.
From now on, explore the layers yourself. Add and remove the layers you need for the questions.
What climate zone does a
long, wide stretch of
North America lie within,
and does that climate
zone have a dry season?
What major religion is
predominant in the
Southeastern region of the
U.S.?
According to this web
page, does the United
States have more
language diversity, less
language diversity, or the
same amount of language
diversity as Canada does?
In the contiguous United
States (meaning all states
except Alaska and
Hawaii), have there been
any volcanic eruptions
that caused human
deaths?
If so, how many
eruptions?
Exploring Human-Environment Interaction
This theme consists of three aspects:
 how humans depend on the environment,
 how humans adapt to the environment,
 and how humans modify or change the environment. Websites 5 through 7 each will
address one of these aspects.
Go to
http://helenair.com/news/opinion/readers_alley/article_8bfc460c-455d-11e0-94bb01cc4c002e0.html
This is a letter to the editor of the Helena, Montana, Independent Record, written by Mary
Fitzpatrick, in response to some actions by the Montana State Legislature. Some of what is
written is opinion, but some is well-stated fact about how humans depend on the environment.
Use the letter to answer the questions.
Ms. Fitzpatrick
defines the
environment as what?
[2nd paragraph]
Defined this way,
what does the
environment
do for humans?
[2nd paragraph]
Do you agree with
her claim that “when
the waters and air are
polluted, the whole
community is
polluted, including
human bodies”? Why
or why not?
What do you think is
something important
that we depend on the
environment for?
Exploring Human-Environment Interaction- Continued
Go to http://digitalshowcase.dpsk12.org/ARCHIVE-07/Misc/HIll/France/HEI.html
This page addresses both sides of the human-environment interaction theme, looking at examples
from France.
List again the two
parts of the theme of
human-environment
interaction? Examine
the two headings for
information on the
slide.
What are two ways
that people have
changed their
environment in
France?
What two ways does
the slide show that
people adapt to their
environment?
Exploring Human-Environment Interaction- Continued Yet Again
Go to http://otis.coe.uky.edu/ccsso/cssapmodules/dams/overview.html This web page uses a
specific yet common modification to introduce the idea of how humans modify or change the
environment. Use the letter to answer the questions.
What does the page
call the relationship
between the natural
environment and
human culture?
Besides technological
adaptation, what has
increasingly modified
the natural
environment?
What are two of the
five examples of the
permanent changes to
the natural world
resulting from the
factor listed in b.
Exploring Movement
This theme deals with how we are connected by the movement of people, products, and ideas.
Go to http://maps.google.com/ .
You will use this website to answer the next three questions. If Google does not open with a map
of Michigan, in the box at the top of the page, type in “Detroit, Michigan” and hit the enter key.
Zoom in closer on Detroit.
In the box at the top
of the page, type in
"airports." Zoom out
so you can see
Michigan.
Name three
airports in
southeast
Michigan?
If you are on satellite
view or Earth view, in
the upper right corner,
click on "Map"
instead.
 How are the
highways in
Detroit named?
Type "Traffic" in the
search box. What
information are you
given about these
highways?
The previous two
topics dealt with a
couple of ways that
people and products
can move. But how
do ideas move? One
way is
communication.
 What are two
search terms that
could you enter at
this site that are
businesses related
to
communication?
Exploring Region
This theme deals with the ways in which the world is divided into areas for study. The last two
websites 9 and 10 will address this theme. – 9 will show what regions can be, and 10 will allow
for a comparison of regions.
What can a region be?
Go to http://education.nationalgeographic.com/education/standards/national-geographystandards/?ar_a=1 .
This part of National Geographic's Education website lists the national standards for the study of
geography. Click on the description of standard number 5 in the list of standards.
At that page (Geography Standards: That People Create Regions to Interpret Earth’s
Complexity), read the first paragraph and then click on "Show all" to continues reading and
answer the following questions.
What does a region
have that sets it apart
from another?
[1st paragraph]
How small, and how
big, can regions be?
[2nd paragraph]
How many basic
ways do geographers
define regions?
[2nd paragraph]
What is the first type
of region, and what
is it characterized
by?
[3rd paragraph]
What is the second
type of region, and
what is it organized
around?
[4th paragraph]
What is the third
type of region, what
does it reflect, and
what is it defined
by?
[5th paragraph]
Comparing Regions
Go to http://education.nationalgeographic.com/education/maps/united-states-regions/?ar_a=1 .
Use the information on this page to answer the two questions.
Into how many
regions does this
website divide the
U.S., and what are
the regions' names?
How does National
Geographic define
region?
List examples of
ways to define a
region given.
Keep the regions map up and open this link in a new tab.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Climate_of_the_United_States#mediaviewer/File:Average_Annual_
High_Temperature_of_the_United_States.jpg . Scroll down and click on the second map that
shows "Annual Average Max Temperature ( F).
In a well developed
short answer in full
sentences, use the
two maps to
compare the regions
of the United States
in terms of
temperature.
At the top of the web page there is a United States map colored by region.
 Click on the Western region, which is purple. Record information about this region in the
chart below.

When you have completed the “West” column, use the back arrow in your web browser
to navigate back to the map page and click on the Northeast region, which is dark green.
F E AT U RE S
Climate:
temperatures
West
Northeast
July
January
Climate:
yearly precipitation
Major Landforms
Population:
Name the largest state.
Give its population.
Population:
Name the smallest
state.
Give its population
List 3 Manufactured
Products/ Resources.
List 3 Natural Products/
Resources, including at
least 1 from mining and
1 from farming.
Although any region has a number of differences from other regions, there are usually at least
some similarities between different regions.
Complete the chart below with similarities that you noticed between the West and the Northeast.
Think of as many as you can, using the links from web page if necessary, as well as any
knowledge you already had about these two regions.
Si milaritie s