Download what is geography - Renton School District

In your social studies class this year, you will be reading about the lands and peoples of the world. You will
discover that geography is a very important part of the story that you are about to read. Geography is the study of
the earth and the way the people live on it and use it. It includes all the earth’s landforms, bodies of water,
weather, plant and animal life, and people, as well as the effects of human activity on the earth.
Geographers sift through “clues” to discover the reasons that places are the way they are and the reasons that
people interact with the land the way they do. To organize their detective work, many geographers use the Five
Fundamentals Themes of Geography. These fundamental themes, or basic ideas, are described in the chart on
page 5.
Location
One of the five themes of geography is location. Every place on the earth has an exact position, which is called its
absolute location. This position can be measured and expressed through the use of imaginary lines called latitude
and longitude. You will read about latitude and longitude in the Geography Skill lesson on pages 32-33
Relative location, or the relationship of one place to other places, is expressed through words. For example,
Algeria is closer to the equator than Russia is. This information helps to explain why Algeria is warmer year-round
than Russia is.
Description of Place
Another theme of geography is description of place. This theme explains what a place is like by describing its
physical and human characteristics. For example, the shape of a place’s land, its climate, and animal life would be
described along with how the people look and the kinds of buildings they live in. This theme also helps us to
understand what a place is like by showing how it is similar to or different from other places.
Human-Environment Interaction
Another theme of geography is human-environment interaction. The environment is the surroundings in which
people, plants, or animals live. This theme describes the relationship between people and their surroundings.
Think about how the environment helps to shape the way people earn a living. For example, many people in Japan
earn their living by fishing. Japan is an island country whose surrounding waters are filled with fish. People, in
turn, also affect the environment. For example, they may catch too many fish in the ocean area and thus endanger
the fish that live there. The photo on page 4 shows how Indonesian farmers have affected their environment.
Movement
Another theme of geography is the movement of people, goods, and ideas around the world. IN this book, for
example, you will read about the large groups of people who moved to a fertile river valley in northern Africa
thousands of years ago. They brought their ideas and traditions with them to their new home. You will also read
about how this area became a major center for trading goods and exchanging ideas.
Regions
Another theme of geography is regions. A region is an area with common physical or cultural features that set it
apart from other areas. The size of regions can vary greatly. Think about the “regions” in your house or school.
There are different areas for eating, sleeping, bathing, and studying. One example of a physical region is the huge
desert that is part of the island continent of Australia. The language spoken in a place can set a cultural region
apart. For example, people living in Switzerland speak French, German, or Italian, depending on the region of the
country in which they live.