University of Wisconsin
Follow the Drop
Young surveyors look for patterns in water flow around campus. Using a map of the school (that you will need to create), they mark the direction of the path of water. They also perform calculations for the volume that becomes runoff. The...
Curated OER
Hide and Seek with Bones: A Mapping and Scaling Comparison
Young scholars examine and simulate how paleontologists map objects. They hide and find objects using a grid to map the objects' placements.
Curated OER
A Map of the Big Race
Students read a novel and practice putting the events into the correct sequence. Using the text, they create a map showing the events of the race in order and a legend. They must use vocabulary from previous chapters and make their map...
Curated OER
Drawing A Map
Students discuss any information they already know about maps. As a class, they draw a map of a park following written directions making sure to include a compass rose and key. They are graded based on a rubric and discuss the need for...
Curated OER
MAPS AND TOPOGRAPHY
Learners analyze the details of a topographic map and create one of their own by utilyzing a map of elevations.
Curated OER
Topo Map Mania!
Learners read and use topographical maps. They also use a compass to find bearing to an object on a map and in the classroom. Ask your students how they might travel to somewhere they have never been to befo
Curated OER
Mapping My World
First graders make two maps. In this developing and reading maps activity, 1st graders read Mapping Penny's World, discuss the parts of a map, create a map of their classroom, and create a list of directions of how to get to various...
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...
National Wildlife Federation
Quantifying Land Changes Over Time Using Landsat
"Humans have become a geologic agent comparable to erosion and [volcanic] eruptions ..." Paul J. Crutzen, a Nobel Prize-winning atmospheric chemist. Using Landsat imagery, scholars create a grid showing land use type, such as urban,...
Curated OER
Ratios And Scale
students investigate the concept of using a ratio in the work of construction and solve problems using real life applications. They read descriptions of how various types of construction professionals use ratios on the job. The lesson...
Kentucky Educational Television
The Road to Proportional Reasoning
Just how big would it really be? Young mathematicians determine if different toys are proportional and if their scale is accurate. They solve problems relating scale along with volume and surface area using manipulatives. The...
EngageNY
Getting a Handle on New Transformations 2
Use 2x2 matrices to move along a line. The second day of a two-day lesson is the 28th installment in a 32-part unit. Pupils work together to create and solve systems of equations that will map a transformation to a given...
Curated OER
What Are Maps For?
Students create a story about a problem someone could have which could be solved by the use of a map. They complete a worksheet that guides them through the features of a map of Chicago. Then they calculate story problems using the...
Curated OER
Learning Ratios and Proportions Through Scale Drawings
Middle and high schoolers explore the concept of scale drawings. They discuss what a scale is and that scales provide a ratio. Pupils construct a scale drawing of their classroom using graph paper.
Curated OER
Electronic Mapping
Students identify countries, oceans, and capitals by building an electronic map.
Curated OER
Introducing the Concept: Proportions
Young scholars measure distances. In this proportions lesson, students use a map to find how far it is between different cities. Young scholars use their knowledge of measurement, multiplication and fractions to find the distances.
Curated OER
Maps
Students figure out the mileage from one state to another using a map. In this map lesson, students look at the scale factor and turn it into a fraction. They measure the distance between two cities and use the proportion to find the...
Curated OER
The Gold Rush
Students identify the routes involved in the Gold Rush on a map. In this map skills lesson, students use a United States map to locate the routes used to travel to California during the Gold Rush. Students demonstrate how to use the map...
Curated OER
Cattle Trails
Pupils identify and locate cattle trails on a globe. In this map skill lesson, students use a marker to locate Texas and Montana and use the map scale to calculate the distance of the cattle trail.
Curated OER
An Early American Culture
Students identify the locations of the Hopewell culture. In this map skills lesson, students use a globe to mark several locations of the Hopewell culture.
Curated OER
Mapping the Bone Field: An Area and Scale Exercise
Here is an excellent cross-curricular lesson. Learners relate multiplication to area by making a grid on graph paper, and then creating the same grid in real space outside in the school yard.
Civil War Trust
Map the Civil War
Mapmaking was a very important element in successfully planning attacks on enemies during the Civil War. Guide pupils through the process of pacing to find the average length of their steps, measure the distance between one object...
Prince William Network
Migration Math Madness
A great way to incorporate math into life science, this lesson has learners measure migratory routes on a map and calculate the actual distance that shorebirds on the routes would cover. Learners compute the distance covered in both...