1. The Five Themes of Geography A Framework for Studying the World
North Carolina Geographic Alliance
PowerPoint Presentations
2007

2. Essential Question
What are the 5 themes of Geography and why do we use various map projections?

3. Theme 1: Location Two Types of Location Where is It? Absolute
Relative
Where is It?
Why is It There?

4. Absolute Location A specific place on the Earth’s surface
Uses a grid system
Latitude and longitude
A global address

5. Oklahoma Absolute Location Oklahoma City 35° N Latitude
97° W longitude

6. Relative Location Where a place is in relation to another place
Uses directional words to describe
Cardinal and intermediate directions

7. Oklahoma
Oklahoma is bordered by Kansas and Colorado on the north, Texas on the south, New Mexico and Texas on the west, and Arkansas and Missouri on the east.
Oklahoma is one of the Southwestern States

8. Regions = places united by specific characteristics
Theme 2: Regions
Regions = places united by specific characteristics
Formal Regions = a region defined by a common characteristic. Ex. The Corn Belt
Functional Regions = a central point and the surrounding territories linked to it. Ex. Houston
Perceptual Regions = a region defined by popular feelings and images rather than by objective data
Ex. The Deep South
Cultural Regions = a region defined many factors such as government, social groups, economic systems, language, or religion
Ex. The Middle East

9. Theme 3: Physical Geography Physical Land Characteristics
Land Features
Mountains, plains, and plateaus
Climate
Bodies of Water
Ecosystem

10. Physical Characteristics
Photos above: Steve Pierce

11. Theme 4: Human Systems People Culture Language Religion
Buildings and Landmarks
Cities
Movement

12. Human Systems

13. Movement The Mobility of People Goods Ideas
How Places are linked to one another and the world

14. Movement http://www.evertize.com/land/images/I-40-64%20interchange.JPG

15. Theme 5: Human- Environment Interaction
How People Interact With Their Environment
People . . .
Adapt to Their Environment
Modify Their Environment
Depend on Their Environment

16. Human Environment Interaction

17. From Globes to Maps 4 From Globes to Maps:
To create maps, cartographers project the round earth onto a flat surface–making a map projection.
There are more than a hundred kinds of map projections, some with general names and some named for the cartographers who developed them.
The basic categories of map projections are shown here: planar, cylindrical, Conic, and Mercator.
From Globes to Maps 4

18. Cylindrical Projection A cylindrical projection is based on the projection of the globe onto a cylinder. This projection is most accurate near the Equator, but shapes and distances are distorted near the Poles.
From Globes to Maps 6

19. Conic Projection A conic projection comes from placing a cone over part of a globe. Conic projections are best suited for showing limited east–west areas that are not too far from the Equator. For these uses, a conic projection can indicate distances and directions fairly accurately.
From Globes to Maps 7

20. Common Map Projections 3
Robinson Projection The Robinson projection has minor distortions. The sizes and shapes near the eastern and western edges of the map are accurate, and the outlines of the continents appear much as they do on the globe. However, the shapes of the polar areas appear somewhat distorted.
Common Map Projections 3

21. Common Map Projections 5
Mercator Projection The Mercator projection, once the most commonly used projection, increasingly distorts size and distance as it moves away from the Equator. This makes areas such as Greenland and Antarctica look much larger than they would appear on a globe. However, Mercator projections do accurately show true directions and the shapes of landmasses, making these maps useful for sea travel.
Common Map Projections 5