What Does Geography Study
What do we do when we study geography? We explore and learn about two main issues: places and people. There are two branches of geography, called physical geography and human geography:
- physical geography examines the nature and environment and with it, natural hazards and their effects for example what happens when a volcano erupts or where and why does flooding occur
- human geography studies the effects of our activities on the planet and what living in our environments on the lives and activities of the people means, such as why people move from villages into towns or even migrate from country to country or what it happens when we exploit the earths resources or why we experience the effects of global warming
Key Takeaways: Physical Geography
- Physical geography is the study of our planet and its systems .
- Understanding the climate and how it’s changing affect people now and can help plan for the future.
- Because the study of Earth is vast, numerous sub-branches of physical geography specialize in different areas, from the upper limits of the sky to the bottom of the ocean.
In contrast, cultural or human geography spends time studying why people locate where they do and how they adapt to and change the landscape in which they live. Someone studying cultural geography might also research how languages, religion, and other aspects of culture develop where people live how those aspects are transmitted to others as people move or how cultures change because of where they move.
All About Physical Geography
Physical geography is the branch of the science with which most people are familiar. It includes the study of climates, flora, and fauna, the atmosphere, landscape features, erosion, and more. This article gives an overview of the physical geography and provides numerous links to further information.
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Location: Where Is It
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Absolute: A location can be absolute as in coordinates of a map using longitude and latitude
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Relative: A location can be relative – examples: next door, nearby, a short drive, down the road a ways. Or, it can be in the same general location as another location – example: next to the post office.
Why You Should Teach Geography In Spanish To Your Kids
Teaching Spanish to your children or students opens their eyes to a whole world beyond their own culture and community. This global awareness is only fortified when you add geography in Spanish as a way to understand the world through science but in a different language.
Besides, geography is just one more area of knowledge that your kids need to learn to be able to say that theyre fluent in Spanish, just as they need to learn about math, music, or sports in Spanish.
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Physical Geography For Kids Definition
Geography consists of two major segments: human and nature. The study of the nature segment comprises physical geography. Physical geography deals with various elements for collective study.
The study includes seasons of the earth, earths behaviour in relation to the sun, atmospheres composition, wind and pressure in the atmosphere, hydrologic cycle, disturbances caused by storms and climate, microclimate, climate zones, natural calamities, soil, flora and fauna on earth, flowing rivers and streams, erosion of earthen materials, weather, the terrain at coasts, deserts across the world, glaciers, ecosystems, system of geologic, and several other things.
What Is Physical Geography For Kids Definition Sub
It is difficult to define geography in a sentence. Geography helps us to understand our surroundings and how they change with time. In simple terms, it focuses on studying landforms, the environment, the earth, and its relationship with the inhabitants.
The term geography has ancient Greek origins. The Greeks discovered, wrote, and mapped the earth, and they required a word to describe it. So they chose the word geo, which means earth and graphy, which means to write. The extensive study of geography is further divided into two fields, human geography and physical geography.
Let us discuss what physical geography is for kids.
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Great Geography Lessons For Kids
Teaching geography for kids is something that usually is taught in passing as the core subjects of math and reading are typically the focused subjects. But, if integration between social studies and reading and/or math happens, a whole bunch of possibilities open up for being able to share a lot of nonfiction text and map skills with children!
Have you ever watched the late night talk shows where they take a microphone and camera on the street and ask basic geography trivia to the passerbys on the street? And usually the unsuspecting participants arent able to answer simple elementary map questions?
I just hope Im never asked to be put on the spot like that either because I might crack under the pressure.
But it does make me wonder if geography skills both on the local and world levels are being overlooked because of lack of time?
Historical Evolution Of The Discipline
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From the birth of geography as a science during the Greek classical period and until the late nineteenth century with the birth of anthropogeography , geography was almost exclusively a natural science: the study of location and descriptive gazetteer of all places of the known world. Several works among the best known during this long period could be cited as an example, from Strabo , Eratosthenes or Dionisio Periegetes in the Ancient Age to the Alexander von Humboldt in the nineteenth century, in which geography is regarded as a physical and natural science, of course, through the work Summa de GeografÃa of from the early sixteenth century, which indicated for the first time the New World.
During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, a controversy exported from geology, between supporters of James Hutton and Georges Cuvier strongly influenced the field of geography, because geography at this time was a natural science.
The second important process is the theory of evolution by Darwin in mid-century which meant an important impetus in the development of Biogeography.
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Geography Resources For Teaching Kids
Need some new activities to spice up your latitude and longitude related lessons? Here are a few to get your wheels turning.
Quizzes and Games:
While this example is honestly to see if you are smarter than a 5th grader, it could be a fun idea to have your students parents take the quiz with the children as a pre-assessment. Then take it again together after your unit or theme has been taught to see the improvement.
From the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, this interactive game has students practice finding the various 50 states on a United States map.
It also gives up-to-date state unemployment rate data too, which might be useful if you have older students and want to graph it or even discuss why some states would be much higher than others.
Sticking with the US map trend, I like how this game is an online jigsaw puzzle! You have to be able to add the pieces onto the map without having any type of lines .
It is a bit more advanced for those older or gifted students.
Shaking things up a little bit, there are some quizzes out there with a world focus too. This one has questions where the student has to choose the right country from a multiple choice list based on the question listed.
This option was pretty hard for me. It is only an outline of a country and 4 multiple choice options. After choosing the right option, it does give the quiz taker some interesting facts about that particular country which I found very interesting.
Printables:
Songs:
~Charity
Research Examples Of Physical Geography
Students explore how specific features of physical geography affect nearby country borders. They conduct research on the North Sea, Scandinavia, the Strait of Gibraltar, and the Netherlands.
Grades
English Language Arts, Geography, Physical Geography
Contents
1. Build background about how countries share geographical features such as oceans.
Remind students about their decision-making in Lesson 5, Activity 1 regarding ocean and sea borders. Ask: How do you think countries actually divide and share ocean resources? Explain to students that each country abides by an international agreement establishing an exclusive economic zone , an area extending 200 nautical miles off a countrys coast. According to this agreement, each country has the right to explore and exploit the living and nonliving things in its EEZ. Ask: How might sharing a geographical feature, like an ocean, or a natural resource within it create problems between the countries that share them? Students may mention disagreements surrounding environmental preservation, distribution of resources, commercial activity, residential and military occupation, and travel and tourism.
2. Have students compare and contrast possible conflicts around specific physical features.
3. Have students research case studies of countries’ disputes over physical geography.
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Physical Geography Of The Uk
The UK has some of the most diverse environments for its size. Take a look at the video below to see how well you know the natural environments of the UK.
The video below explores landscapes in the UK in 100 seconds.
The UK in 100 seconds from Friends of the Earth on Vimeo.
The physical geography of the UK was formed through geological, fluvial, glacial, erosional and tectonic processes.
The majority of the UKs upland areas are located in the north and west of the country. These areas are mainly formed from igneous and metamorphic rock. Lowlands are typically found around the coast and in the south and east. These areas are mainly made up of sedimentary rock.
A map to show the physical geography of the UK and Ireland
The UK consists of a number of river basins. These are large areas of land drained by a river and its tributaries. At 220 miles the longest river in the UK is the River Severn.
A map to show the main river basin regions in the UK source gov.uk
Main drainage basins in the UK source unknown
Region: Unifying Or Similar Characteristics
A region is an area that is defined by certain similar characteristics. Those unifying or similar characteristics can be physical, natural, human, or cultural. For example, if you lived on an island, and that island had a group of mountains at one end of the island, those mountains would be a mountainous region of the island.
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All About Cultural Geography
Geography isn’t all about mountains, bodies of water, and other physical features of the earth. With this article, you’ll learn about the human side of geography. You’ll learn how languages, economics, governmental structures, and even the arts are connected to the physical features of our world.
We hope these resources help you and your kids learn geography. Enjoy!
What Is Geography Kid Friendly Definition
Geographygeography
. Likewise, people ask, what is geography in simple words?
Geography is the study of earth and its people. Its features are things like continents, seas, rivers and mountains. A geographer tries to understand the world and the things that are in it, how they started and how they have changed.
Also, what is a map Children’s definition? A map is a drawing of all or part of Earth’s surface. Its basic purpose is to show where things are. Maps may show visible features, such as rivers and lakes, forests, buildings, and roads. They may also show things that cannot be seen, such as boundaries and temperatures. Most maps are drawn on a flat surface.
Keeping this in consideration, how do you explain geography?
Geography is the study of places and the relationships between people and their environments. Geographers explore both the physical properties of Earth’s surface and the human societies spread across it.
What is another word for geography?
Words related to geographytopography, geopolitics, geology, cartography, physiography, topology, chorography.
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A Kids Guide To Physical Geography In Spanish
If you want to teach geography in Spanish to your children or students, you have to make it interesting for them. The good news is that geography is one of the subjects that better captures the imagination of kids around the world.
In this blog post, Im discussing what geography is and why you should teach it in Spanish to your kids. Im focusing on physical geography and the terms related to it, both in English and Spanish. Finally, Im giving you ideas about how to better introduce the subject to your kids and Im including a quiz about geography in Spanish at the end of the lesson.
Are you ready? ¡Empecemos!
Different Regions Of The United States Of America
The United States is divided into five major regions
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Examples Of Physical Geography In A Sentence
physical geographyForbesphysical geographysun-sentinel.comphysical geographyNBC Newsphysical geography Washington Postphysical geographyThe Atlanticphysical geography Ars Technicaphysical geography BostonGlobe.comphysical geography Smithsonian
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word ‘physical geography.’ Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Physical Or Land Region
Physical or land region is an area with geographic boundaries. For example- in the United States, there is a major physical region known as the Great Plains. This specific region has a lot of grass, is flat, and is home to animals like bison and antelope. Similarly, River region in South America is characterized by warm temperatures, heavy rainfall, and similar diversity of plant and animal species.
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Preparing For The Geography Bee
The National Geography Bee is for kids in the fourth through eighth grade. Kids can learn about the Bee and how to prepare. If your school is one of the 1,000+ that participate in the Geography Bee, the information and links in this article can help your students prepare.
This article teaches kids some of the important basics of geography and answers questions such as these:
- What is geography?
- How does geography differ from geology?
- What do geographers do?
This page for kids includes a listing of fun facts about the planet earth such as these:
- The size of the earth.
- The number of countries on our planet.
- The highest and lowest points on the surface of the earth.
- The age of the earth.
- And, more…
What Is The Study Of Geography
GeographystudyGeographyAreas of physical geography include:
- Geomorphology: the shape of the Earth’s surface and how it came about.
- Hydrology: the Earth’s water.
- Glaciology: glaciers and ice sheets.
- Biogeography: species, how they are distributed and why.
- Climatology: the climate.
The major Branches of Geography are:
- Physical Geography.
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What Is Physical Geography
- M.A., Geography, California State University – Northridge
- B.A., Geography, University of California – Davis
The vast discipline of geography is divided into two major branches: 1) physical geography and 2) cultural or human geography. Physical geography encompasses the geographic tradition known as the Earth sciences tradition. Physical geographers look at the landscapes, surface processes, and climate of the earthall of the activity found in the four spheres of our planet.
Help Your Child Learn Geography
- M.A., Geography, California State University – Northridge
- B.A., Geography, University of California – Davis
ThoughtCo includes a large collection of resources that are appropriate for children. This article provides easy access to the best of our resources for kids who are aspiring geographers, have a geography quiz coming up at school, or are part of a bee.
As a starting point, Geography 101 provides a bunch of information about geography with links to articles all over ThoughtCo. Among others, you’ll find information on these topics:
- The definition of “geography.”
- The different branches and divisions of geography.
- Information on studying geography and working as a geographer.
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Why Is Geography Important For Kids
Obviously, we want our students to grow up as good local, national, and world citizens. We want them to question current events in places close to home, as well as far from anywhere they may have been.
That starts by learning major bodies of water, earth science , and even state capitals.
So much of physical geography and maps are tied into learning how to read a map with math skills. I distinctly remember measuring out the scales on a map to figure out how many actual miles were from point A to point B within the state of Ohio when I was in elementary school. Believe it or not, I have been hiking in places with no GPS signals, so that was a skill I was successfully able to translate to the real world as an adult myself.
Now, there are so many more great ways to learn about geography than having a simple lesson plan of measuring map scales. You can use geography games for kids, quizzes, fun facts, books, trivia, songs, videos, webquests, and other hands-on activities out there.