Download Five Themes of Geography Cornell Notes

Five Themes of Geography
Cornell Notes
SSWG1 The student will explain the
physical aspects of geography.
SSWG2 The student will explain the
cultural aspects of geography.
• Geography is the study of the
distribution and interaction of
physical and human features
on the earth.
• Physical geography includes
landforms, bodies of water,
climate, soils, vegetation and
animal life.
• Cultural geography includes
traditions, customs, and other
aspects of a group of people’s
daily lives.
• Geographers use maps,
charts, graphs, photographs
and the 5 themes to describe
spaces on Earth
• There are 5 themes of
geography:
– Location
– Place
– Region
– Movement
– Human-Environment
Interaction
• Location E?
– “Where is it?”
• 2 types of location
– Absolute-exact location
– Relative-in relation to other things
• Absolute location
– Uses latitude and longitude
– Latitude measured N & S
• 0 is the Equator
• Max number is 90
– Longitude is measured E & W
• 0 is the Prime Meridian
• Max number is 180 
• Relative Location
– Uses landmarks, distances, etc.
– Used more often by general
population
• Place E?
– “What is it like?”
• Place includes physical and
cultural characteristics
• Places are set apart from
each other by physical
features (rivers, climate, etc.)
• Place can also be described
by ways that people have
changed the land (building
dams, temples, skyscrapers
etc.)
• Region E?
– “How are places similar and
different?”
• Defined as an area of the world
with similar characteristics
• Not limited to political boundaries
• 3 main types of regions
– Formal-defined by limited
characteristics (Southwest Asia,
Latin America)
– Functional-organized around
connections and interactions (Atlanta
Metro Area)
– Perceptual-defined differently by
different people (American Midwest)
• Movement E?
– “How do people, goods, and ideas
move from one location to another?”
• Distance
– Linear distance-how far across the
earth something travels
– Time distance-amount of time it
takes for something to travel
– Psychological distance-how far away
we think things are
• The theme of movement is closely
connected with economics.
• Globalization has influenced
movement in the 21st century.
• Human-Environment Interaction E?
– “How do people relate to the physical
world?”
• To survive, people must use their
environment
– People sometimes use the environment as
is—fishing in a river
– People sometimes alter the environment
positively—creating a dam to control
flooding on a river
– People sometimes alter the environment
negatively—creating industrial pollution in a
river
• People also must learn to live with
aspects of the environment that don’t
change
– Climate, soil, etc.
• Interaction between people and their
environment can shape cultures.