The Five Themes of Geography Mrs. McDonough JCMS

What is Geography? And, really, who cares? Geography is the study of the physical features or the Earth and its atmosphere, and of human activity. Cartographers, people who draw or make maps, care about geography.

But why should you care about geography? Because geography means more than just “maps and stuff.” Geography is a simple word for a very complex thing. In fact, there are five themes to help you understand.

Remembering the Five Themes: MR. HELP M = Movement R = Region HE = Human/Environment Interaction L = Location P = Place

Location Where is it?

Location There are two types of location: Absolute – uses numbers to show location Relative – describes the location of a place in relation to another place.

Absolute Location Absolute location is found by using latitude and longitude lines Latitude lines (a.k.a parallels) are drawn from East to West with a degree measure of North to South The major line of LATITUDE is the Equator, which splits the Earth into Northern and Southern Hemispheres.

Absolute Location Longitude lines (a.k.a Meridians) are drawn from North to South with a degree measure of East to West. The major line of LONGITUDE is the Prime Meridian, which splits the Earth into Eastern and Western Hemispheres.

Relative Location This is where an area is described depending on where another area is. For example: The 7th Grade hallway is across from the media center.

Movement How did they get there?

Movement describes how … People, products, and ideas move by transportation and communication. This is how we get our “stuff!” We are constantly sharing ideas, material items, etc. around the neighborhood, school, or even the world!

What can move? GOODS PEOPLE AND PRODUCTS MONEY IDEAS

FORMS OF TRANSPORTATION How can things move? WORD OF MOUTH COMPUTERS FORMS OF TRANSPORTATION SATELLITES TELEPHONES

How is this place like other places? How is it different? Region How is this place like other places? How is it different?

Region: Areas/regions are chunks of land that have something in common. Areas can be described by their human & physical features. Regions can be: BIG or small

Region A region can be described by its physical features. For example: In the Sahara Desert region in Northern Africa, many people value water.

Region A region can also be described by its human features. For example: Most people in the Middle Eastern region speak Arabic.

Place What is it like there?

Place You can describe a place by its physical features (made by nature) and human features (made by humans).

Where is this “place?” Can you pick out the physical features? Can you pick out the human features?

Human/Environment Interaction How do we interact with our environment? Who lives there and what do they do?

Human/Environment Interaction Human/Environment Interaction explains how people use and change their environment. What humans do to nature and what nature can do to humans.

Human/Environment Interaction It is not always a negative thing … what are some positive ways that humans influence the environment?