Five Themes of Geography

Location

Every place has an absolute location.

A place also has a relative location.

Relative location is its location in relation to other places.

Location Question

Where is this place located, and how has its location affected it?

Place

Every place is unique and has its own personality and character.

Weather, plants and animals,history, and people make a place unique.

Place Question

What are the unique features of this place, and how are they important?

Human-Environment Interaction

People interact with the environment in many ways.

People use land to grow food and local materials to build houses.

Human-Environment Interaction

A place's environment influences how people live.

When the weather is cold, people wear warm clothes.

Human-Environment Interaction Question

What is this place's environment like, and how does it affect the people who live there?

Movement

The world is always changing, and places are affected by the movement of people, goods, ideas, and physical forces.

People come and go, new businesses begin, and rivers change their course.

Movement Question

How is this place changing why?

Region

An area that has one or more features that make it different from surrounding areas.

A desert, a country, and a coastal area are all regions.

Geographers use regions to break the world into smaller pieces to study.

Region Question