5 Themes of Geography Geographers looked at the world in many ways.  Geography is not just “Where is it?” They chose five major categories (themes) to cover all the important areas: 1.Location 2.Place 3.Human/Environment Interaction 4.Regions 5.Movement

5 Themes of Geography Theme #1: Location Location – this is the “Where is it?” question that is the basis of Geography. Everything happens somewhere. Absolute Location – The exact location on the map; Ex: Manila is at 15 N and 121 E Relative Location – A description of where it is. Ex: Manila is in the northern part of the Philippines.

5 Themes of Geography Theme #2 – Place Places have their own special qualities that make them unique or different. Physical Characteristics: Natural surroundings like landforms or climate. Human Characteristics: Things that Humans have done to impact an area –Buildings, governments, language or even cultural expressions.

5 Themes of Geography Theme #3 – Human-Environment Interaction People live in different places and share with their environment. We use resources the land and sea offer us. o Ex: we use the Susquehanna river for drinking water We alter the land and sea to better fit our needs. o We built the Springton Lake Reservoir for drinking water We impact our environment o Negatively – ex: pollution o Positively – ex: preserve open land with National Parks

5 Themes of Geography Theme #4 – Regions Groups of places that have some common characteristics. Can be grouped in many ways o Physical Characteristics for ex: Mountains-Poconos o Cultural Characteristics, like Philly for cheese steaks These are the geographic 5 regions of the U.S. Can you think why they are separate regions?

5 Themes of Geography Theme #5 – Movement People and things move around the globe. Things move because of people’s needs and the physical characteristics of the area. o Ex: oil tankers from Chester oil refineries to Boston. Human characteristics of an area move as well. o People’s culture is transferred by cell phones, internet o People from one area giving their ideas to another area. Ex: Italian food in the U.S.