Geography Skills

I. Movements of the Earth The Earth revolves around the sun in a nearly circular pattern(orbit). One Revolution takes 365 ¼ days As it orbits the sun, it also spins on its . One rotation takes 24 hours The tilt in the Earth’s axis causes sunlight to strike different parts of the Earth at different times. Creating seasons (tilt is 23.5 degrees) 1. Spring - March 20-23 2. Summer- June 21-22 3. Fall - September 22-23 4. Winter - Around December 21

II. The Globe Scaled model of the Earth Shows actual size, shape, and location of landmasses and bodies of water drawn to a scale Shows the 7 continents an d4 oceans

III. Hemisphere A. The globe is in the shape of a sphere You see only one half at a time-hemi means half (easier to study one half at a time) Geographers divide the globe into 4 hemispheres to study An imaginary line known as the Equator divides the Globe into the Northern and Southern hemispheres

IV. Latitude and Longitude A. In order to accurately locate places, a global grid was created . Global grid is an imaginary set of lines, Latitude and Longitude used to pinpoint location B. The Latitude lines, or parallels run east to west. *They measure the distance north or south of the equator C. Longitude lines, or meridians run north to south * They measure the distance east or west of the Prime Meridian which runs through Greenwich, England

D. Latitude and Longitude are measured in degrees D. Latitude and Longitude are measured in degrees. When writing a location the latitude measurement is written first ( 30 N, 80 W) V. Maps Shows regions on a flat surface Difficulty is showing correct size and shape (making something flat that is meant to be round) Mapmakers use different types of projections to fix the distortions. Try to choose the map with the least distortions.

D. Types of projections (M6-M7) Same shape map- accurately shows land but distorts the size and distance between Mercator Projection-accurately shows shape of land and direction but distorts the distance and size Equal area map- shows the correct size of land byt distorts the shape of the land especially at the edges Robinson map keeps size and shape relations of most oceans and continents. Polar areas are distorted. Overall view is good

VI. Using maps There are 5 major parts to every map Title- states subject of the map (read it) Compass rose –shows direction Cardinal directions-N, S, E, W Intermediate directions- NW, SW, NE, SE 3. Key-shows what the symbols and colors on the map mean 4 Locator-Shows where location is on a globe 5. Scale bar- helps to find the actual distance between areas on the map

VII. Types of Maps Political maps-Show the cities, states, countries or other political features Physical maps-Show a region’s physical features such as hills, mountains, rivers, deserts, etc 1. elevation map-uses color to show the height of land 2. relief map- uses shading to show the rise and fall of the land C. Special purpose maps 1. Climate maps 4. Human migration 2. language maps 5. world land use 3. religion map 6. Historical

VIII. Themes of Geography Place- description of what an area is like based on natural and human features Location-Where is it? Absolute location-use latitude and longitude Relative location-where one place is In relation to another 3. Region –an area with common features that set it apart from others 4. Movement-Movement of goods, people, and ideas around the world. How this affects the people and the area’s development 5. Human/environment interaction- relationship between people and the land they live on