''Agriculture, Food, and Rural Land Use" constitutes a major part of the AP Human Geography course outline. This article explores challenging topics to teach, emerging research trends in agricultural geography, and sample teaching approaches for concretizing abstract topics. It addresses content identified as "essential knowledge"…

This exercise is designed to illustrate the concept of a region and, more specifically, the subconcept of regionalization by involving students in working with facts and statistics available in the "Statistical Abstract of the United States" (U.S. Bureau of the Census, U.S. Department of Commerce 1971, 2001). The exercise supports the national…

Describes the changes taking place as a result of the depletion of groundwater supplied by the Ogallala aquifer. Provides maps and tables which show changes occurring in agriculture, and reports the results of a survey of residents' opinions on potential solutions to the problem. (JDH)

Suggests that the Midwest has definitive cultural geography that can be studied meaningfully. Point is illustrated by portraying a cultural subregion of the Midwest and testing the usefulness of the portrayal by examining the geographic, agricultural, and political traits that can be regionalized as a base. (TRS)

Intercropping involves growing two or more crops at the same time in the same field. Encouragement of this traditional African farming method would increase food supplies in Jamaica and reduce imports of food. The local expertise of small farmers in Third World countries can help solve many world problems. (CS)

Examines how Soviet economic planners and policymakers cope with the geographic dichotomy of a concentration of population and economic activity in European Russia and the concentration of natural resources in sparsely populated Siberia. (Author/DB)

Problems of agricultural land consolidation, as illustrated by Taiwan's first 10-year land reform phase, include fragmentation of holdings, cost of consolidation, corruption and maladministration by government officials, and timing of operations. (AV)

Maintains that the teaching of traditional tropical agriculture through the presentation of large numbers of categories or types tends to overemphasize superficial differences at the expense of comprehending the inner essence of life as it exists for the majority of the world's farmers. Offers an alternative approach which claims to foster greater…

Water resources play a major role in the character of agricultural development in the arid western United States. This case study shows how thermal infrared imagery, which is sensitive to radiant or heat energy, can be used to interpret crop moisture content and associated stress in irrigated areas. (RM)

Modern agriculture's green revolution refers to a complex package that includes improved seeds and a wide range of efficient management practices. The genetic history of and technological developments that led to the green revolution are described, and its impact discussed. (RM)

The study of viticulture (the growing of grapes) can illustrate the practical applications of geography: spatial orientation, focus on natural environment, human-land interaction, and concern with the properties and characteristics of regions. A suggested course outline is given, as well as a listing of resources about viticulture. (IS)

Describes a simulation, "The Isolated Estate," which introduces geography students to the Von Thonen model and game theory. The objective of the game is to make textbook concepts more realistic. Concepts illustrated through the game include agricultural land use, economic rent, competetive bidding, inequities associated with differential incomes,…

Describes "Harvest of Hope," a project for science and geography instruction in which students from an inner-city and a suburban school joined in a community service project. Explains that the students planned, planted, and harvested crops for the needy on school property. Includes handouts simulating international negotiations, trade…

Presents a middle school lesson on the geographic theme of human-environmental interaction. Explains that the natural environments of the Dominican Republic and the gulf region of Alabama are compared and contrasted in the production of sugar cane. Includes maps, graphs, a historic speech, and suggested texts. (DK)

This paper represents an attempt to trace the development of the change in American attitudes toward resources and the environment and to analyze past, present, and future trends in resource development and environmental protection. (Author)