Imagine your friend asks you, "Where is the post office?" You might say, "Go straight, then turn left." But what if your friend is coming from a different road? Directions like left and right can be confusing!
That is why we use directions like North, South, East, and West. These directions never change, no matter where you stand. And to show places on paper, we use maps. Let us learn about directions and maps!
There are four main directions, called cardinal directions:
| Direction | Short Form | How to Remember |
|---|---|---|
| North | N | The direction towards the North Pole (top of the map) |
| South | S | The direction towards the South Pole (bottom of the map) |
| East | E | The direction where the Sun rises (right side of the map) |
| West | W | The direction where the Sun sets (left side of the map) |
Easy trick: Stand facing the Sun in the early morning. You are facing East. Behind you is West. Your left hand points North. Your right hand points South.
Sometimes a place is not exactly to the North or East. It may be in between. These are called intermediate directions (in-between directions):
| Direction | Short Form | Position |
|---|---|---|
| North-East | NE | Between North and East |
| North-West | NW | Between North and West |
| South-East | SE | Between South and East |
| South-West | SW | Between South and West |
Together, the four cardinal and four intermediate directions give us eight directions in total.
A compass is a small instrument that helps us find directions. It has a magnetic needle that always points towards the North. Once you know where North is, you can easily find all other directions.
Sailors, travellers, and hikers use a compass to find their way. In olden times, Indian traders and sailors used the stars and the Sun to find directions before the compass was common.
A map is a drawing of a place as seen from above, drawn on a flat surface (like paper). Maps show us where things are -- roads, rivers, buildings, mountains, and more.
A map is different from a picture. A picture shows how a place looks from the front. A map shows how a place looks from the top (like a bird flying above).
Every good map has these important parts:
| Part of a Map | What It Does |
|---|---|
| Title | Tells us what the map is about (e.g., "Map of India" or "Map of Our School") |
| Compass Rose | A small drawing on the map that shows the directions (N, S, E, W) |
| Key / Legend | A box that explains the symbols used on the map (e.g., a blue line = river, a green patch = park) |
| Scale | Tells us how much distance on the map equals how much distance in real life (e.g., 1 cm = 1 km) |
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Cardinal directions | The four main directions: North, South, East, West |
| Intermediate directions | The four in-between directions: NE, NW, SE, SW |
| Compass | An instrument with a magnetic needle that always points North |
| Map | A drawing of a place as seen from above, on a flat surface |
| Compass Rose | A symbol on a map showing directions |
| Key / Legend | A box on a map explaining what the symbols mean |
| Scale | Shows how distance on a map relates to real distance |
Draw a simple map of your neighbourhood in the box below. Include your house, school, a shop, a park, and a road. Add a compass rose, a title, and a key.
Draw your map here
| Question | Your Answer |
|---|---|
| What is to the North of your house? | |
| What is to the East of your school? | |
| In which direction is the park from your house? |
Want to use this as a worksheet? Switch to the A4 printable view.
Imagine your friend asks you, "Where is the post office?" You might say, "Go straight, then turn left." But what if your friend is coming from a different road? Directions like left and right can be confusing!
That is why we use directions like North, South, East, and West. These directions never change, no matter where you stand. And to show places on paper, we use maps. Let us learn about directions and maps!
There are four main directions, called cardinal directions:
| Direction | Short Form | How to Remember |
|---|---|---|
| North | N | The direction towards the North Pole (top of the map) |
| South | S | The direction towards the South Pole (bottom of the map) |
| East | E | The direction where the Sun rises (right side of the map) |
| West | W | The direction where the Sun sets (left side of the map) |
Easy trick: Stand facing the Sun in the early morning. You are facing East. Behind you is West. Your left hand points North. Your right hand points South.
Think about it: The Sun always rises in the East and sets in the West. This is true everywhere in India!
Sometimes a place is not exactly to the North or East. It may be in between. These are called intermediate directions (in-between directions):
| Direction | Short Form | Position |
|---|---|---|
| North-East | NE | Between North and East |
| North-West | NW | Between North and West |
| South-East | SE | Between South and East |
| South-West | SW | Between South and West |
Together, the four cardinal and four intermediate directions give us eight directions in total.
A compass is a small instrument that helps us find directions. It has a magnetic needle that always points towards the North. Once you know where North is, you can easily find all other directions.
Sailors, travellers, and hikers use a compass to find their way. In olden times, Indian traders and sailors used the stars and the Sun to find directions before the compass was common.
Think about it: If you are lost in a forest and have a compass, you can find North and then figure out which way to walk!
A map is a drawing of a place as seen from above, drawn on a flat surface (like paper). Maps show us where things are -- roads, rivers, buildings, mountains, and more.
A map is different from a picture. A picture shows how a place looks from the front. A map shows how a place looks from the top (like a bird flying above).
Every good map has these important parts:
| Part of a Map | What It Does |
|---|---|
| Title | Tells us what the map is about (e.g., "Map of India" or "Map of Our School") |
| Compass Rose | A small drawing on the map that shows the directions (N, S, E, W) |
| Key / Legend | A box that explains the symbols used on the map (e.g., a blue line = river, a green patch = park) |
| Scale | Tells us how much distance on the map equals how much distance in real life (e.g., 1 cm = 1 km) |
Think about it: Without a key, you would not know what the symbols on a map mean. Without a compass rose, you would not know which direction is North!
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Cardinal directions | The four main directions: North, South, East, West |
| Intermediate directions | The four in-between directions: NE, NW, SE, SW |
| Compass | An instrument with a magnetic needle that always points North |
| Map | A drawing of a place as seen from above, on a flat surface |
| Compass Rose | A symbol on a map showing directions |
| Key / Legend | A box on a map explaining what the symbols mean |
| Scale | Shows how distance on a map relates to real distance |
Anil's teacher asked the class to stand in the school ground in the morning. They faced the Sun (East). The teacher helped them find all four directions. They discovered that the school gate was to the South and the playground was to the West.
On the political map of India, Jammu and Kashmir is in the North, Tamil Nadu is in the South, Arunachal Pradesh is in the North-East, and Gujarat is in the West. The key on the map shows that a star marks the national capital, New Delhi.
Fatima's family was driving from Jaipur to Udaipur. Her father used a road map to find the best route. The map's scale showed that 1 cm on the map was equal to 50 km in real life. Fatima measured the distance on the map and calculated the journey was about 400 km.
A. Fill in the Blanks
B. Multiple Choice Questions
C. Short Answer Questions
Draw a simple map of your neighbourhood in the box below. Include your house, school, a shop, a park, and a road. Add a compass rose, a title, and a key.
Draw your map here
| Question | Your Answer |
|---|---|
| What is to the North of your house? | |
| What is to the East of your school? | |
| In which direction is the park from your house? |