Download Geography

Geography
Geography includes the study of the five fundamental themes of location, place,
regions, movement, and human/environmental interaction. Students need
geographic knowledge to analyze issues and problems and to better understand
how humans have interacted with their environment over time, how geography has
impacted settlement and population, and how geographic factors influence climate,
culture, the economy, and world events. A geographic perspective also enables
students to better understand the past and present and to prepare for the future.
Terms
• human characteristics: dams, roads, urban
centers, etc.
• human/environmental interaction:
relationships between people and places,
including human modification of the
environment and the physical environment’s
effect on human settlement and activities
Harry A. Gretter (Kentucky)
SWIMMERS AT ELKHORN FALLS, c. 1915
Courtesy Kentucky Historical Society
• location: a reference to a place defined in absolute or relative terms
• movement: the migration of people, goods, or ideas
• physical characteristics: climate, bodies of water, landforms, etc.
• place: a location that can be described by physical and/or human characteristics,
such as the Ohio River or the city of Louisville
• region: an area defined by a characteristic, such as political boundaries, cultural
activities, etc.