1. Everything You Need to Know About Maps
Map Skills
Everything You Need to Know About Maps

2. What is a map?
Maps help you to locate a particular place on the Earth and tell you where they are from the place you are. All Maps have the same parts, and each part helps you to read the map and understand it.

3. What are the parts of a map?
Map title – Tells you what the map shows.
compass rose – Shows cardinal directions.
key or legend – Tells you what symbols, colors, or shapes mean.
Scale – Shows the distance from one place to another on a map.
* Remember, a map is a small representation of an area, so one inch can equal hundreds of miles!

4. Map Title
What is the title of this map?

5. Compass Rose
A compass rose tells the direction of a location, either North, South, East or West.
Compasses have intermediate directions such as northeast, northwest, southeast, or southwest.
Can you explain the need
for intermediate directions?

6. Compass Rose
COMPASS ROSE
Is Kansas north or south of Texas?

7. Key or Legend
Key
What states have the most people?

8. Scale
Scale

9. Making a Scale for a Map
You can’t make a map that is the same size as the place you are mapping! That would be a HUGE map! When you make a map “to scale” that means you make it smaller. Here’s how.
Measure the area for which you are making a map.
Convert feet to centimeters or inches. For example 1 ft. = 1 cm.
So, your classroom is 30 ft. long, that would be 30 cm. on your paper.

10. Your Assignment
Make a map of your classroom. Show where all the important things are located.

11. Credits