New York State Elementary Test Prep- ELA 4- Grade 3 - lesson on using commas in quotes

Someday you will want to travel and reading a map can help you know where you are, where you are going, or help you decide where you want to go!

What is a map?

A map is a flat representation of a place.

Are there different types of maps?

There are many different kinds of maps. We will focus on political maps.

A political map shows boundaries that divide political areas from one another, such as villages, counties, cities, states, and countries.

Let's take a look at a political map!

When you read a map the first thing you read is the title. Then, if there is a map key or legend, you read that to see what the symbols stand for. If there is no legend there are a couple of things you need to know. Stars indicate the capital of countries and circles show major cities.

Let's practice reading the map.

What is the title of this map?

Locate the country called Egypt. Find the city that has the star by it. What is the capital of Egypt?

Let's try locating one more capital city.

What is the capital of Ethiopia?

Political maps also show borders. A border is an outer edge or boundary. Countries often times border other countries or oceans. For example, on the above map, the Atlantic Ocean borders Ghana to the south, the Ivory Coast borders Ghana to the west, and Togo borders Ghana to the east.

Let's practice finding borders.

What ocean borders Angola?

One more practice on finding borders.

What country borders Chad to the north?

Remember, it is important to know how to read maps. First read the title of the map, then look at the map key, if there is one.

Let's practice! Click on the globe below to practice reading a political map!