Design a Mini City Map
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What you will learn
- 1Use geometry knowledge to design a simple city map
- 2Apply coordinate skills to label positions on a grid
Mini Lesson
A city map uses a grid to show where places are. Streets run across (East-West) and up and down (North-South). We use shapes for buildings: rectangles for shops, triangles for parks, circles for fountains, and squares for libraries. A compass rose shows the four directions: N, S, E, W.
Planning Your Map
- Draw a grid with streets going across and up.
- Add a compass rose in one corner (N at the top).
- Place buildings on your grid using different shapes.
- Label each building and street clearly, and add a scale (1 square = 50 meters).
- Use coordinates (column, row) to describe each location.
Shape Review
- Rectangle: 4 right angles, opposite sides equal — great for buildings.
- Triangle: 3 sides — used for roofs or parks.
- Circle: round with no corners — used for fountains or traffic circles.
- Square: special rectangle, all 4 sides equal — used for town squares.
- Pentagon, hexagon: 5 and 6 sides — used for unusual landmarks.
Words to know
Map
A drawing that shows places from above
e.g. I drew a map of my mini city.
Coordinates
A pair of numbers that name a point on a grid
e.g. The library is at coordinates (3, 5).
Grid
A pattern of squares made by crossing lines
e.g. I plot buildings on the city grid.
Symbol
A small picture on a map that stands for a place
e.g. A book is the symbol for the library.
Legend
A small box on a map that tells what each symbol means
e.g. My map legend names every place.
Scale
A note that shows how a small distance equals a real distance
e.g. My scale: 1 grid square = 50 meters.
A coordinate pair (x, y) gives the column number first, then the row number. Think: "along the hallway, then up the stairs!"
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