Teaching regionally focused introductory undergraduate courses can be challenging when students do not have similar levels of formal geography experience. One way to offset this problem is to introduce core geographical concepts as a framework to help refocus attention on the myriad spatial dynamics at work in a region. This article explores how key themes in geography were utilized in two different undergraduate courses, both of which focused on East Asia. Analyses of course projects revealed that students effectively applied the five themes of geography across myriad settings and at various regional scales to enhance their study and understanding of globalization-related dynamics in the region.