The National Geography Standards encompasses six elements and eighteen standards including the following:
The geographically informed person knows and understands...
Essential Element I. THE WORLD IN SPATIAL TERMS
Standard 1. How to use maps and other geographic representations, tools, and technologies to acquire, process, and report information from a spatial perspective.
Standard 2. How to use mental maps to organize information about people, places, and environments in a spatial context.
Standard 3. How to analyze the spatial organization of people, places, and environments on Earth's surface.
Citation: National Geography Standards, Geography Education Standards Project. 1994. Geography for Life: The National Geography Standards. Washington D.C.: National Geographic Society Committee on Research and Exploration.