S1 Geography

Map skills Revision

Map???A map is a drawing or picture, which shows the

main features on the ground, as they would be seen from directly above. It could be anything from a sketch map for a visitor to your school, or a detailed map of your local town centre.

A map can show many different things, such as road and railways, hill and rivers, countries and capitals and so on. The main purpose of a map is to show where places or things are in relation to other places.

List of map skills to master! • Direction 8 point compass• Scale for example, 1:50 000• Distance straight line and

squiggly line• 4 and 6 figure grid-reference • OS map symbols • Height spot height,

triangulation pillar, contour lines and colour shading

Direction

21 22 23 2466

67

68F

A

BGC

H

E

ID

A C

Compass Directions

J

N

E

S

W

NW NE

SESW

What direction are you walking ?

D F H I JG EB A

What is a Scale?

Every map has a scale printed on the front or the bottom of the page and you should always check this figure before you start reading it. It will tell you how much smaller the area shown on the map is compared to the same area in real life.

What is a Scale?

For example, a 1:50000 scale map, means that one centimetre on the map is the same as 50000 centimetres in real life, or in other word, 500 metres. Or everything has been shrank (reduced by) 50,000 times to make the map.

My scale is 1:50,000

2cm = 1000m it is 1km

5cm = 2500m 2.5km

1cm = 500m 9cm = 4500m 4.5km

14cm = 7000m 7km

Distance

4 and 6 figure grid-reference

Four figuregrid references

Mapping

This is part of a 1:50000 OS map

Reproduced with the permission of the Controller of HMSO © Crown Copyright NC/02/15232

Each square is 1km x 1km

Reproduced with the permission of the Controller of HMSO © Crown Copyright NC/02/15232

This is part of a 1:50000 OS map

Each square is 1km x 1km

Each square has a different grid reference

96

96

98

98

99

99

00

00

East

north

69 69

68 68

67 67

70 70

It has Easting grid lines

Reproduced with the permission of the Controller of HMSO © Crown Copyright NC/02/15232

It hasNorthinggrid lines

97

97

01

0171 71

Each square hasA four figure Grid Reference

9968

97

97

98

98

99

99

00

00

69 69

68 68

67 67

70 70

Exercise What is the grid reference of squares A-J

A

B

CD

E F

G

H

I

J

A

Reproduced with the permission of the Controller of HMSO © Crown Copyright NC/02/15232

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

J

C 9967

B 9869

A 9768

D 9767

E 9669

F 9969

G 9867

H 9769

I 9968

J 9766

Six figuregrid references

Mapping

0

Each square has an invisible grid to help give 6 figure references

Each square hasa four figure grid reference

The church is at Easting993

The church is at Northing688

The 6 figure Grid Ref is 993688

Reproduced with the permission of the Controller of HMSO © Crown Copyright NC/02/15232

6899 1 2 4 5 6 7 8 9

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

9

3

8

9968

6 Figure grid references210

Easting before Northing (E before N !)

21 22 23 2466

67

68A

A B

B

CC

D

D EE

F

FG

G

H

H

II

J

J

677

6 Figure grid references210

Easting before Northing (E before N !)

225669

231678

232671

218671 239665 235662

223678

221660

211666 21 22 23 24

66

67

68A

A B

B

CC

D

D EE

F

FG

G

H

H

II

J

J

677

OS map symbols

If you want more revisions help…http://mapzone.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/mapzone/PagesHomeworkHelp/docs/easypeasy.pdf

You can also use your “Passport” booklet for revision

Good luck!