Maps of Home

Lesson Plan - Get It!

Audio:

• Have you ever seen an adult use GPS for directions on their phone or other device?

GPS stands for Global Positioning System, and it helps you figure out exactly where you are on the earth. It uses special satellites in the sky to talk to a device you have, like a phone or a GPS watch. This way, you can know your location and find your way to places.

Before GPS, most people had an atlas, a book of maps, in the car.

• Does your family have any maps in the car or house?
• Where could you find a map if you wanted one?

Maps are wonderful for helping you find directions, but they have other uses too!

Maps are useful for showing what a geographical region looks like. They can also show you physical traits, like city names, river names, and borderlines.

Maps can also be more detailed and show you different patterns across an area, like patterns of precipitation, population, or dialects.

Even though there are many types of maps, there are a few characteristics common to all of them.

• Do you know what they are?

Maps have a legend or key, a compass showing north, and a scale.

To learn more about the parts of a map, watch the video below.

After watching, answer these questions.

• What is the purpose of a legend or map key?
• Why is a map compass, or compass rose, helpful?
• Why is a map scale needed?

Now, explore Google Earth.

1. Click inside the Search Google Earth bar.

2. Then, click on I'm feeling lucky. This will take you to random locations around the world.

3. Zoom in and out to experience this 3D map.

4. Click on Next to view another location. Do this as many times as you'd like.

• Did you enjoy exploring the earth?
• How do you think they made maps before satellites could see the earth from above?

Travel on over to the Got It? section to create your own map!