Let's use the five themes to study the geography of Ecuador. For this activity, you need the graphic organizer shown below. Follow along through the slides and answer the questions on the graphic organizer. You will also need the story Ecuador Wow! written by Susan Husiak as you complete this activity. When you are finished entering information, submit it to your teacher for a grade.
LocationGeographers usually study an area of the world by first finding its location -- either absolute or relative location. Absolute would be locating it on a globe, pinpointing the exact intersection of the latitude and longitude lines. Relative location is the location in relation to other places. Using the map below, what is the absolute location of Quito, the capital of Ecuador? Which lines of latitude and longitude does Ecuador fall between? What is the relative location? 
Reminder: Relative location is your location in relationship to other places (north of, south of, northeast of, next to, across from) and is given with at preferably three reference points (such as most of the United States is south of Canada, west of the Atlantic Ocean and north of Mexico). 
Click image to enlarge. PlaceRead the story Ecuador Wow! Examine each of the photos shown and be sure to pay attention to the story's text. What are the human and physical characteristics of Ecuador based on these photos? Due to Ecuador's location on the Equator, the ocean currents, and its landforms, there are four diverse climate zones. Be sure to list climate of this area on your worksheet! Also list the human features of the are - what makes this place unique? For answers, look at the buildings, food, celebrations, clothing and landscape. 
Click images to enlarge. Human/Environment InteractionAfter reading the story Ecuador Wow!, you should have a good idea about Ecuador. Now see if you can find how people have adapted to and modified the environment of Ecuador. Below is a worksheet to remind you of the five themes of geography. As you complete this part of the graphic organizer, notice how at times the five themes overlap. When examining how humans interact with their environment to change it, notice how you will also see a human feature of the place. Record the information you find on your graphic organizer. Feel free to search the Internet for additional information. MovementDetermine how goods, ideas, and people move in and out of Ecuador. Look for migration of patterns of humans and pay particularly close attention to photographs in the story Ecuador Now to see roads, TV towers, newspaper stands, trucks, etc, which are all examples of movement. 
Click images to enlarge. RegionDecide what type of region that Ecuador fits into in relation to the other countries of South America. For this activity, determine what type of geographic region Ecuador is. 
Click images to enlarge. Comparing CitiesHow does your state and city compare to Ecuador and its capital of Quito? You will need to research this on the Internet and complete the comparison chart on your graphic organizer. 
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