The Keystone School · grades 6–12
Geography & Economics
Where things are and why it matters — the land beneath human life, and the exchanges that organize it.
The patterns of the Earth's surface, and the forces that carved them.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~18 hours
Unit I — The Shape of the Land
Continents and ocean basins · Landforms and how they form · Rivers, lakes, and watersheds · Reading elevation and relief
Unit II — Climate & Vegetation
Latitude and climate · Climate regions of the world · Biomes and their distribution · Natural hazards
Unit III — Earth's Patterns
The distribution of water · Soil and agriculture · Natural resources by region · Human adaptation to place
How people spread across the map — cities, migration, culture, and the borders drawn between them.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~22 hours
Unit I — Population & Migration
Population distribution and density · The demographic transition · Push and pull factors · Urbanization
Unit II — Culture & Identity
Language and religion on the map · Cultural landscapes · Diffusion of culture · Ethnicity and nationalism
Unit III — Development & Space
Measuring development · Agriculture and land use · Cities and their structure · Globalization's geography
The logic of scarcity — how individuals, firms, and prices settle who gets what.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~24 hours
Unit I — Foundations
Scarcity, choice, and opportunity cost · The production possibilities curve · Comparative advantage and trade · Marginal thinking
Unit II — Supply & Demand
The law of demand · The law of supply · Market equilibrium · Elasticity
Unit III — Markets & Their Failures
Costs of production · Competition and monopoly · Externalities and public goods · The role of government
The view from above — growth, unemployment, inflation, and the levers governments pull.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~24 hours
Unit I — Measuring the Economy
Gross domestic product · Inflation and price indexes · Unemployment · The business cycle
Unit II — Money & Banking
What money is and does · Banks and the money supply · The central bank · Monetary policy
Unit III — Policy & Growth
Aggregate supply and demand · Fiscal policy · Economic growth · Trade and exchange rates
Every map is an argument; this course teaches you to read the claim and make your own.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~14 hours
Unit I — Reading Maps
Latitude, longitude, and grid · Scale and distance · Map projections and their distortions · Legends and symbols
Unit II — Kinds of Maps
Physical and political maps · Thematic and choropleth maps · Topographic maps · How maps can mislead
Unit III — Mapping Today
Geographic information systems · Satellite imagery and GPS · Mapping data responsibly · Making a map of your own