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Course 226 · Life course 48

Explain Places with Human and Physical Geography

A fictional region atlas explanation linking landforms, settlement, climate, resources and transport, with a comparison that avoids geographic determinism. Use six supplied cases to build and check the project.

Before you start

Paper or a free text document is sufficient. All core case facts are supplied.

Maps and Location Data for Community Decisions See everything you’ll need

Free download · Original practice data · No external account required. Download the starter pack

What you’ll leave with

A fictional region atlas explanation linking landforms, settlement, climate, resources and transport, with a comparison that avoids geographic determinism.

Start course Start without an account. Sign in to save lesson progress across devices.

Your project

Start with the practice files. Build your project one lesson at a time.

Practice files are free without an account. Sign in to save your project record in My Proof: a description, checklist, and optional work link. Keep the original files in your own app or notebook; saving a project record does not upload them.

  1. Get your materialsDownload practice filesSupplied practice cases, a blank working record, complete lesson instructions, and annotated worked examples.
  2. Make your projectView the project checklist Work in your own notebook, document, or software. Use the supplied practice examples when you prefer.
  3. Keep a private recordSave a project record Sign in to save a description and checklist, then return to update them.
Course handbook

Know the route before you begin.

Here’s what you’ll need and what you’ll make. You can return to this guide during any lesson.

Who this is for

Learners aged 14+ building neutral, evidence-based explanations with supplied fictional cases; no civic eligibility is implied.

Prepare before lesson one
  • Paper or a free text document is sufficient. All core case facts are supplied.
  • Use the supplied fictional cases. No personal records, political preferences, registration or outside contact is required.
  • Suggested earlier course: Maps and Location Data for Community Decisions
Your final project

Finish with proof you can use.

A fictional region atlas explanation linking landforms, settlement, climate, resources and transport, with a comparison that avoids geographic determinism.

Save a project record in My Proof
See project checklist and review criteria

Keep your working files in your own notebook or software. Save a private description, checklist, and work link in My Proof.

What to include

  • Scale/location record.
  • Drainage and divide explanation.
  • Weather/climate comparison.
  • Multi-factor settlement and movement network.
  • Final atlas with count/rate comparisons and missing evidence.

Review and revise

Use these criteria to check your work and choose what to improve.

  • Distance and coordinates use the stated scale/convention.
  • Watershed and climate records preserve outlets, time windows and units.
  • Settlement/network explanation considers access and investment without stereotyping.
  • Final comparison uses correct denominators and names missing causal evidence.
Three ideas to help you along the way
Three useful ideas

The rules behind the steps.

01

Convert before comparing

State the map scale and retain units.

02

Combine factors

Use physical and institutional evidence together.

03

Bound the explanation

Separate a pattern from a proven cause.

What do these words mean?
Key words

Key terms worth knowing.

Scale
Ratio between map distance and represented ground distance.
Latitude
Position north or south of the equator, expressed in degrees.
Watershed
Land draining to a specified common outlet.
Climate
Long-period patterns of atmospheric conditions.
Geographic determinism
An unsupported claim that physical place fixes people’s abilities or outcomes.
Your route

6 lessons.
One useful project.

Work in order the first time. Each lesson makes something the next lesson can use.

  1. 1
    Up next

    Read scale, direction and coordinates

    Calculate map distance and locate two places using a stated coordinate convention.

  2. 2
    9 min

    Connect landforms and water

    Trace a drainage path and identify which supplied land belongs to a basin.

  3. 3
    9 min

    Distinguish weather from climate zones

    Separate one-day observations from long-term climate summaries.

  4. 4
    10 min

    Explain settlement using multiple factors

    Explain a settlement pattern using physical and institutional factors.

  5. 5
    9 min

    Trace movement of people and goods

    Compare routes for goods and people under stated access conditions.

  6. 6
    13 min

    Compare two regions with limits

    Write a bounded two-region comparison and revise it after counterevidence.

Use the tools

Tools to help you practice.

See all tools
ZIP · practice files

Explain Places with Human and Physical Geography practice files

Supplied practice cases, a blank working record, complete lesson instructions, and annotated worked examples.

Text worksheet

Your course project worksheet

A downloadable text worksheet with each lesson’s working output, space for your answers, and the shared final-project checklist. Save your own copy.

Source transparency

Sources and further study.

Explore the references behind the lessons and take your learning further. Source notes explain access and reuse.

USGS: Finding Your Way With Map and Compass
Source & access notes · checked 2026-10-01

Read scale ratios, cardinal direction and feature/distance interpretation.

Access: Official page content was retrieved with the web reader on 2026-10-01. Video playback, outside forms and personal services were not tested.

Reuse: Original fictional cases and assessments with linked factual references. Source exercises, photographs and diagrams are not copied.

USGS: Watersheds and Drainage Basins
Source & access notes · checked 2026-10-01

Read common outlet, divides, land-use/runoff and downstream effects.

Access: Official page content was retrieved with the web reader on 2026-10-01. Video playback, outside forms and personal services were not tested.

Reuse: Original fictional cases and assessments with linked factual references. Source exercises, photographs and diagrams are not copied.

NOAA NCEI: Weather and Climate
Source & access notes · checked 2026-10-01

Read short-term observations versus long-period patterns and climate normals.

Access: Official page content was retrieved with the web reader on 2026-10-01. Video playback, outside forms and personal services were not tested.

Reuse: Original fictional cases and assessments with linked factual references. Source exercises, photographs and diagrams are not copied.

Ready when you are

Start with the first useful move.

You’ll always know what to do, what to make, and where to go next.

Start lesson one