Curated OER
Contour Maps
Students review various contour maps, including local ones, to identify landforms such as mountains and plains. They create a 3-D contour map of an imaginary location that shows at least 10 changes in elevation. Afterward, they write a...
Curated OER
Volcano Contour Models Activity
Young scholars experiment with water levels and plastic topographic volcano models to determine the contour lines that would be used to create a topograpohic map of a volcano. They use the traced lines to actually develop the map.
Curated OER
Mapping
Introduce middle or high schoolers to topographic maps with this PowerPoint. After a review of longitude and latitude, display and describe contour lines and intervals. Also explain map scale. This is a useful presentation for a social...
Curated OER
Orienteering - Lesson 3 - Topographical Maps and Contour Lines
Learn how to read a topographical map and understand what the contour lines mean. Explore longitude and latitude. Find a cliff, a valley, a mountain peak, and more. This is just one of the ten lessons in this unit on oreinteering....
Curated OER
Topographic Maps
Sometimes it is difficult to grasp topographic maps. Here is a clever presentation designed to help your middle school earth scientists understand. Beginning with a side view of a pair of mountains, a graphic guy walks up one slope. As...
Curated OER
Layers with Lines
Students examine topographical maps and the challenges faced by cartographers when drawing the maps. While creating collages, they use contour lines to add dimension much in the same way they are used on maps to show elevation.
Curated OER
Working with Contour Maps
In this contour maps worksheet, students use contour maps to determine the slope and steepness of different land masses. This worksheet has 16 fill in the blank questions.
Curated OER
Topographic Maps
Your choice of hands-on topographic mapping tasks is provided in this resource. From actual map-making to viewing and interpreting stereographic photos, the activities are sure to succeed. To make the most of this lesson plan, you will...
CK-12 Foundation
Topographic and Geologic Maps: Topographic Maps
Maps are great for helping you get where you're going, but what does that place actually look like? Geology scholars compare and contrast the features of topographical and geologic maps using an interactive lesson. The resource describes...
Cornell University
Constructing and Visualizing Topographic Profiles
Militaries throughout history have used topography information to plan strategies, yet many pupils today don't understand it. Scholars use Legos and a contour gauge to understand how to construct and visualize topographic profiles. This...
Curated OER
MAPS AND TOPOGRAPHY
Students analyze the details of a topographic map and create one of their own by utilyzing a map of elevations.
Curated OER
Topographic Maps
In this topographic map worksheet, learners learn how to read a topographic map and create a topographic map of their own using clay or Play-Doh. Students include contour lines by layering the clay. Learners answer 6 questions about...
Curated OER
Creating a Topographic Map
In this topographic map worksheet, students add contour lines to a topographic map using instructions provided. Once topographic map is finished, students complete 2 follow-up short answer questions.
Curated OER
Salad Tray 3D Topographic Model
High schoolers explore the characteristics of topographical maps. They examine the relationship of contour lines and vertical elevation. Students create a three-dimensional model of a landscape represented by a topographic contour map.
Curated OER
Tracing Highs and Lows in San Francisco
On a topographic map, high schoolers identify the scale bar, north arrow, and contour interval. They then locate a hill on the map and make note of the contour lines. Students then locate other places with similar contour line patterns....
Curated OER
Contour Map Worksheet #3
Earth scientists answer five multiple choice questions about the topographical map atop the learning exercise. Use this as a quick assessment of understanding after having taught how to read contour lines and topographic maps.
Curated OER
Customized Topographic Maps and Models
Students explore the information depicted on topographic maps. They construct a 3-D topographic map of a local area. They go on a field trip to the depicted area and compare the 'real world' with their models.
Curated OER
What Do Maps Show?: Lesson 4 How to Read a Topographic Map
Learners examine the use of topographic maps as two dimensional representations that show elevations and slopes with contour lines. They read maps of the Salt Lake City, Utah area and complete the associated worksheets that show map...
Curated OER
Contour Map Worksheet #2
Following a contour map of a hill, a stream, and the ocean, are five multiple choice questions. Earth science enthusiasts determine elevation, direction of water flow, distance, and steepness. They also match the map to a selection of...
Curated OER
Understanding Topographic Maps
Underclassmen create a cone-shaped landform and then draw a contour map for it. Then they examine a quadrangle (which was easily located with an online search), and relate it to what they experienced. The accompanying worksheet is...
Curated OER
Maps Reinforcement
In this map learning exercise, students complete 6 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions about 3 different map figures.
Curated OER
Identifying Watersheds with Topographic Maps
Middle schoolers model a watershed and delineate one using topographic maps. In this hydrology lesson, students use aluminum foil to model a landscape and observe how water moves on it. They also observe the features of a topographic map...
Curated OER
Cookie Topography
Students construct a cross section diagram showing elevation changes on a "cookie island." Using a chocolate chip cookie for an island, they locate the highest point in centimeters on the cookie and create a scale in feet. After tracing...
Curated OER
Topographic Map Unit Plan
High schoolers examine topographic maps and discover how to decipher contour intervals, use contour lines and apply information to complete a topographic map lab. Working in groups, they identify the scale of the map, latitude and...