Coordinates: finding places on a village map
A village map is drawn on a grid. Move along the x axis and up the y axis to find the temple, the health post and the chautari, and see why (4, 3) is not the same place as (3, 4).
Core concept
In short: Find places on a map grid with two numbers: first across, then up.
A point on a grid is named by an ordered pair (x, y): first how far along the x axis from the origin O, then how far up the y axis; the order matters
Topic: Coordinates
To tell a friend exactly where something is on a map, we use a grid. Two number lines meet at the origin O: the x axis goes along (to the right) and the y axis goes up. Any point is named by two numbers in brackets, its coordinates: A pair of numbers (x, y) that tells you exactly where a point is on a grid. All key words: (x, y). The first number, x, says how far to go along; the second, y, says how far to go up. So (3, 4) means 3 along and 4 up. Because the order matters, it is called an ordered pair: (3, 4) and (4, 3) are different points. The origin itself is (0, 0). In this lab you move a red marker around a village map.
What you will learn
- Name the x axis, the y axis and the origin.
- Read the coordinates of a point as an ordered pair.
- Plot a point from its coordinates.
- Explain why the order of the coordinates matters.
Before you start
- Know how to count along a number line.
Materials
- Squared paper and a pencil to draw your own map
Equipment
- A ruler
Procedure
- Go to (3, 4) and record what is there.
- Go to (4, 3) and record.
- Find the health post and record its coordinates.
- Find the chautari and record its coordinates.
How this simulation is simplified
- The map shows only the first quadrant: x from 0 to 8 and y from 0 to 6.