6 Elements of Geography

6 Elements of
Geography

1. The World in Spatial Terms

Geographers look at the world in spatial terms. (Spatial
means relating to or happening in space.) They are
interested in where things are located on Earth and
why. They use a number of tools, such as maps, to help
show these special relationships.

Multiple Choice

If someone is studying the world in spatial terms, they are looking at ____.

• Where things are located on earth.

• How many people live in one area.

• How things change on the earth's surface.

• When humans began trading in a certain area.

Multiple Choice

What tool would be MOST helpful to a historian studying the world in spatial terms?

• A ruler

• A map

• A record player

• A boat

2. Places and Regions

You live in a particular place. That place may be in a city, small
town, or rural area. It has a name and an address. You also
live in a region. A region is not a specific place. Rather, it is a
way of thinking about a group of places that have something in
common. The Sunbelt, for example, is a region of the United
States made up of warm-weather states.

Multiple Choice

Is Innovation Middle school a PLACE or REGION?

• Place

• Region

Multiple Choice

True or False: A REGION is a specific place with a name and exact address.

• True

• False

3. Physical Systems

Physical geography focuses on processes that shape
and change Earth’s surface. The wearing away of
coastlines by ocean waves is a physical process. Most
physical processes work slowly over time. But they
create the ecosystems, or natural environments, in
which we live.

Multiple Choice

What is something that may change some of earth's natural physical systems?

• A river cutting through a valley over time

• A company building a new skyscraper

• A single tree growing

• Humans creating a trade route between civilizations

4. Human Systems

People are central to the study of geography.
Human activities—such as trade, migration,
settlement, and warfare—affect where people
live.

Multiple Choice

What is NOT a human activity that can affect where people live?

• Trade

• Migration

• Settlement

• Rivers

Multiple Choice

Buying and selling items (tools, crops, weapons...) is part of WHAT human activity?

• Trade

• Migration

• Settlement

• Warfare

5. Environment and Society

People constantly interact with their physical, or
natural, environment. Human geographers study
how physical environments shape the way people
live and how human activities change physical
environments.

Multiple Choice

True or False: People do not interact with the environment, and it has very little effect on where humans live.

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

True or False: Humans can affect the environment just as much as the environment affects them.

• True

• False

6. The Uses of Geography

Geography opens a window to the world
we live in today. It helps us to understand
the past and to plan for the future.

Open Ended

What do YOU think understanding Geography can help you do?

Poll

How confident in your understanding of the 6 Elements of Geography?

• Not at all. I can get there, but I'm not there yet.

• I get a little, but I still need more help to master it.

• I understand it just fine.

• I understand it so well, I could even help others!