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Learning how to use small pictures to represent real things on a map.
Imagine you wanted to draw your whole neighborhood on a single piece of paper. How would you fit a giant oak tree or a two-story house onto something so small?
A map symbol is a tiny picture that stands for something real. Think of it like a 'short-cut' for drawing. If we tried to use real photos on a map, the paper would be too crowded and messy to read! Symbols are simple so that our eyes can find things quickly. For example, instead of drawing every leaf on a tree, we might just draw one green circle. On a map, small symbol can represent giant object in the real world.
Quick Check
Why don't we use real photos of houses and trees on a map?
Answer
Photos are too detailed and would make the map too crowded and hard to read.
Map-makers use colors to help us recognize nature. Water is almost always colored blue. A wavy blue line usually means a river, while a blue circle or oval means a pond or lake. For trees, we often see a green triangle or a 'lollipop' shape (a circle on a stick). If you see a group of three green triangles together, that is the symbol for a forest!
Let's look at a park map: 1. You see a blue wavy line. This is a river. 2. You see five green triangles. These are trees. 3. You see a blue oval. This is a pond.
Quick Check
If you see a blue wavy line on a map, what are you looking at?
Answer
A river.
Buildings are made by people, so they usually have straight lines and sharp corners. A house is often shown as a simple red or brown square. Sometimes, it has a tiny triangle on top to look like a roof. A school might look like a larger rectangle with a tiny flag on top. By using these shapes, we can see exactly where the buildings are in our neighborhood without drawing every window and door.
Imagine a map of a street: 1. There are red squares on the left side. 2. There are red squares on the right side. 3. To find the total houses, we add: houses.
How do we know for sure what a symbol means? We use the Map Key! The key is a small box in the corner of the map. It acts like a secret decoder. It shows the symbol on one side and the word on the other. If you see a star on the map and you aren't sure what it is, look at the key. It might say: .
You are looking for a playground. 1. Look at the Map Key in the corner. 2. Find the word 'Playground'. 3. See that the symbol is a yellow swing set. 4. Now, look at the big map and find that yellow swing set symbol!
What color is usually used for water symbols on a map?
Which symbol would most likely represent a forest?
The Map Key tells you what the symbols on a map mean.
Review Tomorrow
In 24 hours, try to remember the three main colors we discussed (Blue, Green, and Red/Brown) and what objects they usually represent on a map.
Practice Activity
Draw a 'Bedroom Map.' Use a square symbol for your bed and a circle symbol for your chair. Don't forget to make a Map Key!