5 Themes of GeographyChapter 1
Objective: Identify the 5 themes of geography and their significance to the field of study.
Geography
• Study of the distribution and interaction of physical and human features on the earth
5 Themes-Location
• “Where is it?”
• Absolute-exact• Relative-comparative
5 Themes-Place
• “What is it like?”
• Physical-landforms, climate• Cultural-religion, traditions
5 Themes-Region
• “How are places similar?”
• DFW• North Texas
5 Themes- Human-Environment Interaction
• “How do people interact with the environment?”
• Depend-rivers
• Modify-roads
• Adapt-clothes
5 Themes- Movement
• “How do people, goods, and ideas move from place to place?”
• Technology is important factor
• Economic – financial issues, business
• Social – Culture, society
• Political – government, leaders
• Nature – Environment, resources, physical geography
Discussion
• Is the theme of place more closely associated with longitude or latitude? Defend your response with evidence.
Discussion
• With your group, apply each of the five themes of geography to Colleyville, Texas.
Equator
• An imaginary line that divides the earth into northern and southern halves
Objective: Identify elements of maps and the globe and explain how they are useful
Prime meridian
• Imaginary line dividing the earth into eastern and western halves
Hemisphere
• Half of the earth
• Northern, southern, eastern, western
Globe
• 3-Dimensional representation of earth
• Not portable
Cartographer
• Person who makes maps
• Maps are 2-D, distort landmasses, and are portable
Topographic Map
• Shows natural and man-made features on the earth
Thematic Map
• Emphasizes specific information like climate or vegetation or population
GIS-Geographic Information System
• A system that uses digital map information to create a databank
• Can add or remove
different layers to
highlight certain
information