WORLD GEOGRAPHY 9

Syllabus in pdf format

Course Description:

Giving students a number of avenues on which to approach the subject of geography, this course seeks to inform and intrigue. The first month of the course is dedicated to community building, learning basic terminology, and mastering basic skills. Students play games to learn longitude and navigation rules, are introduced to the use of maps, charts, and other visual representations through hands-on activities, and accustom themselves to periodic activities, such as written summaries of current events and the viewing and evaluation of maps and charts with the help of the  "5 Themes of Geography" model. Lastly, students take introductory assessments that test their knowledge of political and physical geography. The results of these assessments are presented to students anonymously in a multimedia presentation so that they may engage in their own discussion and evaluation, particularly in relation to the ultimate goal of the semester-long course: to learn the name of every country on the globe.

The remainder of this course is dedicated primarily to learning the political and physical geography of the principal landmasses. Cultural geography is not ignored, as students read about other nationalities and cultures in their textbooks and in supplementary materials compiled by the teacher. Most of the units of instruction are dedicated to one landmass, so vocabulary that is learned throughout the course is related to each geographic context. In short, the instructor strives to give student a broad, general understanding of the people and places in our world.

Course Materials:

World Geography Today, textbook by Holt, Rinehart, Winston

Videos, maps, sound recordings, primary source documents, and physical objects from various sources

Learning Activities:

Labeling of political and physical maps, vocabulary logs, reading and questions, lecture and notes, creation of topographic maps, analysis and discussion of charts, maps, and statistical data, current event reports, analysis of music and art, learning portfolios (class binders), vocabulary quizzes, tests on physical and political geography by continent

Course Outline:

UNIT I: Introduction to Geography

[standards: Chronological & Spatial Thinking, 3-4; Historical Interpretation, 5]

• Introductory assessments
• History of geography: early maps and exploration
• Introduction to maps and projections
• Basic skills: latitude and longitude, scale and distance keys
• Language focus: terms relating to physical geography

UNIT II: North and Central America

[standards: Chronological & Spatial Thinking, 3-4; Historical Interpretation, 5-6]

• Physical and political maps
• Current events
• Basic skills: analysis using "5 Themes of Geography"
• Foci -

- Language focus: terms relating to political geography and economics

- Cultural focus: indigenous and mestizo populations in Central America

- Political focus: economic imperialism

UNIT III: South America

[standards: Chronological & Spatial Thinking, 3-4; Historical Interpretation, 5]

• Physical and political maps
• Current events
• Intermediate skills: using "5 Themes of Geography"
• Foci -

- Language: writing summaries

- Cultural: cultures of the Andes region

- Political: resource and land management

UNIT IV: Africa

[standards: Chronological & Spatial Thinking, 3-4]

• Physical and political maps
• Current events
• Intermediate skills: interpreting numerical data
• Foci -

- Language: understanding the diffusion of languages

- Cultural: music and storytelling in West Africa

- Political: poverty, population, and economic development

UNIT V: Asia

[standards: Chronological & Spatial Thinking, 3-4; Historical Research, Evidence, Point of View, 4]

• Physical and political maps
• Current events
• Intermediate skills: interpreting numerical data
• Foci -

- Language: critical writing and debate

- Cultural: philosophies and religions of the East

- Political: communism in China

UNIT VI: Europe

[standards: Chronological & Spatial Thinking, 3-4; Historical Research, Evidence, Point of View, 4]

• Physical and political maps
• Current events
• Advanced skills: creating charts and graphs from primary source data
• Foci -

- Language: roots, prefixes, suffixes from Latin and Greek

- Cultural: philosophies and religions of the West

- Political: international treaty organizations

UNIT VII: Australia and Oceania

[standards: Chronological & Spatial Thinking, 3-4]

• Physical and political maps
• Current events
• Advanced skills: mastering the "5 Themes of Geography"
• Foci -

- Language: writing summaries

- Cultural: the art and mythology of Polynesia

- Political: atmospheric and ocean pollution