Five Themes of Geography Chapter 1 The Basics of Geography

First Theme: Location There are 2 basic types of location; absolute and relative Relative location refers to the location of a place in the world comparing it to places around it so that people get a “realistic” idea of where it is in the world. Absolute location is the exact spot of a location based on longitude and latitude. For most people this doesn’t explain where the place is, but if you use technology like GPS and track storms it is very useful.

Second Theme: Place Geographers describe a location based on a description. For example, how would someone describe Stafford? Or Fredericksburg? 1.What does it look like? 2.What is it’s weather or climate like in a year? 3.Are there historical or famous places to help describe the place? 4.How does the land look? (hills, flat, mountainous, rivers) 5.Are there any cultural characteristics unique to this place? 6.What types of vegetation (trees, shrubs) might you see?

Third Theme: Region How are places related and different? How are locations connected and alike even if they are not exactly in the same location on earth? Examples include: earthquake regions, hurricane regions, tornado regions U.S. examples include the “South”, “Rust Belt”, “Great Lakes World examples include the “Middle East”, “Sub-Saharan”, “Central America”, “Southeast Asia”, “Far East” Climate regions include “Tundra”, “Tropics”, “Arid”, “Tropical Wet”

Fourth Theme: Movement This is an area of study where geographers look at how things, people, and ideas move around. Not all places in the world share the same movement of things, people, and ideas. Immigration and Emigration are two important aspects of this “Movement” theme. For example some places in the world are gaining people while other locations are losing population. Industrialized and developed countries share a lot of the same movement patterns as well as the poorer and undeveloped countries sharing many of the same patterns.

Fifth Theme: “Human/Environmental Interaction” This covers the impact of the environment on humans where they live, and how humans impact the environment where they live.

Activity Design a pamphlet or “flyer” using the “Five Themes of Geography” on Fredericksburg or Stafford. One – Location (both absolute and relative) Two - Place (what is it like/describe it or show it) Three – Region (what are some regions it’s considered part of?) Four – Movement (how do things, people, and ideas get around?) Five – Human Environment interaction ( what is and has been the impact of the environment on who we are and what we do? Also, what is the impact of humans on this are?)