 Explain how physical and human geographic factors
create regions and identify various formal, functional
and perceptual regions in the world.
 spatial, spacial [ˈspeɪʃəl]adj
 1. of or relating to space
 2. existing or happening in space
 [From Latin spatium, space.]
 "the first dimension to concentrate on is the spatial
one"; "spatial ability"; "spatial awareness"; "the spatial
distribution of the population“
 Now, at the very top of your map page, write a
complete sentence using the term, spatial, and the
following stem.
 Physical Factors Create Regions
 A physical region is defined by common landforms,
soils, climate, or biome.
 Examples include but are not limited to deserts,
rainforests, prairies, steeps, mountain ranges, river
basins, climate regions, river deltas, archipelagos etc.
 Climate Regions: p 70
 A. Arid and Semi-Arid(Deserts)
 Common climates create regions all over the planet
 Use your text to identify a desert climate region in the
western and eastern hemisphere. Use Special Purpose
Map in conjunction with a political map. Label
country and type of region.
 Check for U: Question: What is a rain shadow? From
LG3
 B. Subarctic: One in west one in east
 C. Humid subtropical: One north of the equator and
one south of the equator
 Volunteers: Label Projected map on whiteboard
 Common types of vegetation
create regions
 A. Boreal (coniferous) forests:
cover large portions of Canada
and Alaska, find another
coniferous forest
 B. Prairies (temperate
grasslands): plenty of fertile soil
creates a perfect environment for
farming and ranching; find
another grassland
 What external process
contributed to the creation of the
prairies?
 C. River systems are regions that include the main
river and all of its tributaries; alternately referred to as
river basins
 Examples: Mississippi River System, Colorado River
System, Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River System,
Mackenzie River System
 Some other physical factors: mountainous areas,
swamp regions, etc
 What is the region called just outside of Austin
westward towards Fredricksburg and Enchanted
Rock? The ________________Country.
 Human Factors Create Regions
 Regions defined by human geographic characteristics
include but are not limited to, cultural regions,
political regions, supranational organizations, trade
networks, transportation corridors, etc.
 A place where people speak the same language
 What type of language region is the United States?
 What type of region is France?
 What type of language region is Brazil?
 Look it up
 Label One
 Trade networks link and unify
different places together
economically to create regions
 A. Mississippi River System: major trade network that
links together resources near the river to industrial
cities that turn the resources into finish goods; also
transportation route of goods to the port in New
Orleans for exporting
 What are some other more modern examples of trade
and transportation “networks” that link or connect
different places?
 Highways
 Subways
 A. Countries, states, provinces, counties, and
cities are all political regions/units at varying scales
due to their unifying boundaries and governments
 Canada’s northern territories: Nunavut has limited
autonomy and is home to a mostly Inuit population
(native)
 What kind of map is this?
 Label one in Asia, Africa,
and Europe. Page 18
 A. Overall, the U.S. and Canada is
predominantly a Christian
region.
 B. Mormonism: creates a unique
religious region found in Utah and
southern Idaho
 C. Bible Belt: region in the
southern U.S. that has the largest
number of regular church
attendance; most church goers of
the region belong to the protestant
faiths, in particularly Baptist
 What type of region is Japan:
page 94
 I. Formal: regions that are created through one or
more unifying characteristics (that are measurable)
 A. Cultural: Quebec (French Canada), the Amish,
Native American Reservations
 B. Political: U.S., Canada, States, Provinces, cities
 C. Physical: Mississippi River Valley, Rocky Mountains,
Great Plains, Appalachian Mountains, Climate regions,
vegetation regions
 Functional regions are: regions with a




defined core that retains a characteristic
that diminishes as it spreads outward;
involves some form of spatial
interaction
A. Washington, D.C.-Boston (Boswash)
Megalopolis
B. San Francisco/Oakland: The Bay Area
C. U.S. Congressional Districts
Newspaper distribution area
 Define: regions that are created through peoples





experiences and beliefs/ideas about places and areas
A. Dixie
B. Sunbelt
C. Breadbasket (the “Midwest”)
D. Rust Belt
E. Bible Belt
 Groups of three
 1 student is the see-er?
 1 student is the walker
 1 student is the doer
 Each image in the hallway is to be observed by the see-
er. The see-er then explains(quietly) to the walker
what the image is. The walker then walks to the doer
and explains the image to the doer. The walker and
the doer then have to agree, what type of region the
image is an example of.