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- 5.6 - Agricultural Production Regions
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Topic 5.6 - Agricultural Production Regions
Overview - AP Human Geography Topic 5.6, Agricultural Production Regions, focuses on understanding where and why different types of agriculture are practiced around the world. The topic explores how physical geography, such as climate and soil, and cultural preferences influence agricultural practices. Key concepts include distinguishing between subsistence agriculture (focused on self-sufficiency) and commercial agriculture (focused on producing goods for sale).
Students also learn about specific agricultural regions, such as pastoral nomadism in arid regions, intensive subsistence farming in Asia, and commercial grain farming in temperate zones. This topic highlights the connections between agriculture, economic development, and global trade networks, emphasizing how farming practices vary based on environmental and economic factors.
Suggested Skill - Explain the degree to which a geographic concept, process, model, or theory effectively explains geographic effects in different contexts and regions of the world.
Enduring Understanding - Availability of resources and cultural practices influence agricultural practices and land-use patterns.
Learning Objective - Explain how economic forces influence agricultural practices.
Essential Knowledge - 1. Agricultural production regions are defined by the extent to which they reflect subsistence or commercial practices (monocropping or monoculture). 2. Intensive and extensive farming practices are determined in part by land costs (bid-rent theory).
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AP Human Geography Fun Fact - The rice terraces of the Philippines, particularly the Banaue Rice Terraces, are sometimes called the "Eighth Wonder of the World." These terraces were carved into the mountains over 2,000 years ago by the Ifugao people and demonstrate the skill of early farmers in adapting to challenging landscapes. They are an excellent example of how people modify the environment for agriculture—perfect for studying concepts like human-environment interaction and intensive farming practices!
Current Event - This isn't directly related to the topic, but I picked it because of how recent this news is: Red dye no. 3 will now be banned in the United States.
Where in the World - WITW is a great way to add current events if applicable.
Bell Ringers - Encourage kids to talk and engage with the content! Take it a step further by having your students write responses as if they are answering a free-response question (FRQ).
Notes - I forgot to add 5.5 last week, so this is all notes from 5.1-5.6.
5.6 Lesson - I can't take any credit for this activity. If you're not familiar with how to play spoons, be sure to look it up on YouTube.
Print enough copies for the number of groups you need. If you want this activity to be reusable every year, consider laminating the cards. I had an amazing teacher's aide who created seven laminated sets for me. She's the best.
You will need one fewer spoon, pencil, pen, or similar object than the number of people in each group. I usually form groups of four.
Shuffle the sets.
Show your class this video.
Let your students play for as long as they stay engaged. After a couple of shuffles, switch up the groups. In the first few rounds, I let my students look at their iPads with the document open. As the rounds progress, I tell them to put it away and try to create a set of four without any help. Depending on the class, we will play for 20-60 minutes. As long as they are having fun, I keep it going!
Have fun!
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Teacher Tip - I create multiple-choice practice questions for my students 3-6 times per unit using College Board resources. I do this after teaching a few topics, and students work on these questions with a partner. It's just practice, so it's not graded. To encourage students to take it seriously and review the questions, some of these practice questions will appear on the unit exam.