Science of Location

Science of Location

Science of Location
Reading Level

	edHelper's suggested reading level:	grade 5
	Flesch-Kincaid grade level:	8.42

Vocabulary

	challenging words:		ecology, emails, immigrate, labor-during, system-plantation, economics, modify, finding, early, waterway, economic, cultural, based, absolute, rotation, meaning
	content words:		Delaware Water Gap, United States, Native American, Great Plains

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Science of Location
By Trista L. Pollard

¹     Early explorers knew there was more land beyond their countries' shores. That is why they navigated through stormy seas to reach these lands. Thanks to their need for adventure, our first maps were made. The science of geography was also born.

²     For many years, geography was known as the "science of location." When you think of geography, you think of finding states, countries, and mountains. In fact, mapping the Earth is only a small part. Geography also includes studies about people, culture, ecology, history, and economics. Geographers do want to know where everyone and everything is located on Earth. However, they also want to know how we affect our environment. For this reason, geography includes five different themes. They are location, place, movement, human/environment interaction, and region.

³     Location is the most well known part of geography. Explorers helped to show us the wonders of Earth through their observations. They used the stars and the horizon to determine direction. Navigators figured out that the shape and rotation of the Earth was related to mapping and direction. Today geographers look at the absolute and relative locations of places. Absolute or exact location of places can be measured using latitude and longitude. Your town has an absolute location based on latitude and longitude. Your street address is the absolute location of your house. Relative location compares one location with its surrounding area. Your summer camp may be near the Delaware Water Gap. Your school may be about forty minutes from Philadelphia. Early explorers believed that sailing west from Europe would help them reach Asia. Geographers use landmarks, time, direction, and distance to describe relative location.

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