ED 738

Geography for
Teachers

Class Three
 Today Topics
• Introductions
• The Purpose of This Course
• Course Format and Schedule
• Follow Up – SC Standards and Geography
• The Six Themes of Geography
• Teaching Geography
• Organizational Matters
 Introductions
Let’s take a few minutes to introduce
ourselves. Where are you from originally,
where have you gone to school, what did
you do before coming to the MAT, why are
you interested in middle grades, what are
your content areas, and anything else you’d
like to share…
 Course Format and Schedule
• See Syllabus
• NOTE THIS IMPORTANT CHANGE. WE
WILL MEET HERE ON JULY 12 AND
ONLINE JULY 8.
• If you need help signing on the blog, see
me after class.
 The Purpose of This Course
• What it is…
– a class designed for pre-service teachers
– for the application of Geography
– to the teaching of SC Middle School students
• What it is not…
– A course in Geography, in any form (such as
Physical geography, Human geography,
Environmental geography, Geomatics,
Regional geography…)
 The Six Themes of Geography
• The World In Spatial Terms
• Places And Regions
• Physical Systems
• Human Systems
• Environment and Society
• The Uses of Geography
 The World in Spatial Terms
• Geography studies relationships between people,
places, and environments by mapping information
about them into a spatial context.

– 1. How to use maps and other geographic representations,

tools and technologies to acquire, process and report
information from a spatial perspective.

– 2. How to use mental maps to organize information about

people, places, and environments in a spatial context.

– 3. How to analyze the spatial organization of people,

places, and environments on Earth's surface.
 Places and Regions
• The identities and lives of individuals and
peoples are rooted in particular places in those
human constructs called regions.

– 4. The physical and human characteristics of places.

– 5. That people create regions to interpret earth's

complexity.

– 6. Low culture and experience influence people's

perceptions of places and regions
 Physical Systems
• Physical processes shape Earth's surface and
interact with plant and animal life to create,
sustain, and modify ecosystems.

– 7. The physical processes that shape the patterns of

Earth's surface.

– 8. The characteristics and spatial distribution of

ecosystems on Earth's surface.
 Human Systems
(Part I)
• People are central to geography in that human
activities help shape Earth's surface, human
settlements and structures are part of Earth's
surface, and humans compete for control of Earth's
surface.

– 9. The characteristics, distribution, and migration of

human population on Earth's surface.

– 10. The characteristics, distribution, and complexity of

Earth's cultural mosaics.
 Human Systems
(Part II)
• People are central to geography in that human
activities help shape Earth's surface, human
settlements and structures are part of Earth's
surface, and humans compete for control of
Earth's surface.

– 12. The processes, patterns, and functions of human

settlement.

– 13. How the forces of cooperation and conflict among

people influence human control of Earth's surface.
 Environment and Society
• The physical environment is modified by human
activities, largely as a consequence of the ways
in which human societies value and use Earth's
natural resources, and human activities are also
influenced by Earth's physical features and
processes.

– 14. How human actions modify the physical

environment.

– 15. How physical systems affect human systems.

– 16. The changes that occur in meaning, use,

distribution and importance or resources.
 The Uses of Geography
• Knowledge of geography enables people to
develop an understanding of the relationships
between people, places, and environments over
time--that is, of Earth as it was, is, and might be.

– 17. How to apply geography to interpret the past.

– 18. How to apply geography to interpret the present

and plan for the future.
 Using the Six Themes

• Use in Bloom’s Taxonomy

• Use in Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences
• Coordination with State Standards
 SC Standards and Geography
• What students need to know:
• In Social Studies
– http://ed.sc.gov/agency/Standards-and-
Learning/Academic-
Standards/old/cso/social_studies/social.html
• In Science
– http://www.ed.sc.gov/agency/Standards-and-
Learning/Academic-
Standards/old/cso/standards/science/sd.html
 Tomorrow
• Meet at the UCG Room 506
• The tools of geography
• The Six Themes of Geography (continued)
• Example of lesson using the six themes
• Use in Inter-disciplinary Units
 Organizational Matters
• Note calendar and change
• Selection of presentation dates and topics
• Selection of summary project topics