AP Geography -- Proposed Course Outline
Textbook -- Introduction to Geography (6th edition), Getis, Getis, and Fellmann, WCB-McGraw-Hill
The following outline is designed for an 18 week semester using an 80 minute block class schedule.
Week Chapter Topics
1. Course Introduction Ch. 1 Course topics
Course expectations
Reading requirements
Skills checks
2. World Regional Review (Prerequisites) Themes of geography
Geographic skills
Pre-test
3. Maps Ch. 2 Map projections
Scale
Patterns and quantities on maps
Remote sensing
4. Physical Geography Ch. 3, 4 Landforms
Earth materials
Tectonic forces
Erosion
Weather and climate
5. Human Impact on the Environment Ch. 5 Ecosystems
Impact on water
Impact on plants and animals
Solid waste disposal
6. Population Ch. 6 Using population data
Population trends and projections
Population policies
Demographic transition models
7. Population Ch. 6 World population distribution
Population density
Overpopulation
Population controls
8. Culture Ch. 7 Subsystems of culture
Innovation
Diffusion
Acculturation
Cultural diversity
9. Culture Ch. 7 Language origins
Language spread and change
Universalizing and ethnic religions
Religious impact on the land
Religious conflicts
10. Spatial Geography Ch. 8 Barriers to migration
Migration patterns
Immigration and emigration
Spatial searches
11. Political Geography Ch. 9 Political systems
Boundaries
Geographic characteristics of states
Political cohesiveness
12. Economic Geography Ch. 10 Indicators of development
Regional development
Promoting development
Subsistence and commercial farming
Intensive and extensive agriculture
Agricultural models
13. Economic Geography Ch. 10 Origination and diffusion of industry
Locational considerations
Manufacturing regions of the world
Models of industrialization
14. Geography of Natural Resources Ch. 11 Energy resources
Mineral resources
Food resources
Forest resources
15. Urban Ch. 12 Why are settlements established
Rural vs. urban
Growth of settlements
Central place theory
16. Urban Ch. 12 Urban land use and planning
Systems of urban settlements
Suburbanization
World urban diversity
Inside the modern city
17. Research Projects
18. Course Review All previous material