9th GRADE OPTIONS
Using an inquiry approach, students will explore questions such as “Where does culture come from?”, “What unifies and divides people?”, “Why are some places more developed than others?”, and “Where do people live and why?”. Throughout the course, students will also analyze and develop a deeper understanding of a wide range of global topics including migration patterns, religions of the world, scarcity of resources, comparative governments, globalization, and genocide. Students will develop critical thinking, reading, writing, speaking skills, as well as mapping and information literacy. The study of human geography provides students with a strong foundation for future social studies courses. This course satisfies the freshman Social Studies graduation requirement.
This year-long college-level course focuses on the impact human populations have on the planet. Units of study include the cultural patterns of religion, ethnicity, and gender; the population patterns of migration, growth, and settlement; and the historical global patterns of economic development, agriculture, and urbanization. Students will develop the ability to think geographically and apply the skills and tools of a geographer to analyze the world. Field studies to local areas are used as learning opportunities. This course is designed to represent an introductory one-semester human geography college course. This course satisfies the freshman Social Studies graduation requirement. Students who successfully complete this course and the AP Human Geography examination may receive college credit and/or higher placement in college.
In Human Geography, you can expect:
readings to be at the 9th grade reading level
introduction of literacy & note-taking strategies
nearly all classwork to be completed in class
frequent opportunities to review and redo work
occasional group work
In AP Human Geography, you can expect:
reading and note-taking from a college textbook
refinement of literacy and note-taking strategies
daily out of class independent work (reading, note-taking, projects)
fast paced
occasional opportunities to revise and correct work
practice taking an AP test before the AP exam in May
When making a decision on the right course, consider many factors:
motivation & student interest
academic readiness
extracurricular participation
attendance
number of honors/AP courses to be taken
ability to balance time to learn and time for leisure and sleep
For example, students with stronger habits but lower scores & grades can still find success in challenging courses. Likewise, those who struggle with organization, time management, self-advocacy, etc. might struggle as course & learning expectations increase.
