Objective:
Students will use latitude & longitude coordinates to make a map of India.B (alternative)
Students will make a map of India, using latitude & longitude coordinates.

Rationale:
David Smith, in his work, "Mapping the World By Heart" has demonstrated that students who make a map of the world, rather than color or label pre-made maps, retain a greater sense of earth’s countries and physical features. Following oral and written instructions is an essential skill. This lesson may get you to try mapping the world with students!

Standard 1: Use maps to acquire, process, & report information from a spatial perspective

Grade level: 5-12

Prior Knowledge Required
Students will need to be able to use rulers for measurement
Students will need familiarity with latitude and longitude;
Students will need familiarity with terms horizontal and vertical

NOTE: You may need to review drawing straight lines by measuring twice and connecting two dots. It is helpful for the instructor to try this in advance.

Theme: Location

Materials: (one per student)
Instruction sheet
Blank sheet of 8 1/2 x 11 white paper
Pencils & erasers; razor tip pen (or black pen)
R ulers for measurement
Atlas map showing Asia
Set of colored pencils

Time Required:
2 class periods; begin with group instructions; students may finish independently.
Day 1: Frame & Grid (this can be the more frustrating part for students)
Day 2: Plotting points of latitude & longitude to make country outlines
Day 3 or Independent work: adding rivers, mountains etc.

Assessment: Rubric

1. Begin : Hold your paper with the narrow side at top

2. Make an inside FRAME for your map:
a. 1/2" top and bottom margins
b. 1/4" left and right side margins

3. Put your name in the bottom right of the paper, outside the frame.

4. TITLE BOX: From the TOP edge of the frame, measure down TWO inches and draw a horizontal line across the framed area. This space (measures 2 inches x 8), is the TITLE BOX and will be used for your map’s TITLE, KEY, and COMPASS. Leave it blank until map features have been added.

In Steps 5 and 6 you will make a GRID inside the framed area. The grid frames an area from the Equator to 40 N; from 60 E to 100 E.

5. LATITUDE:
from the TOP edge of the frame, measure down TWO inches and draw a horizontal line. Label that line 40 N. (Small labels should be put outside frame on both the left and right sides.)

Measure down another TWO inches and draw another horizontal line. Label that line 30 N. Measure down another TWO inches and draw a line. Label that line 20 N. Measure down TWO more inches and draw a line.Label that line 10 N.

The bottom line will be the equator, 0 degrees.

About 5/8" north of 20N, add a dotted line for the Tropic of Cancer.

6. LONGITUDE:
a. From the RIGHT side of the frame, measure TWO inches to the left and draw a vertical line from the bottom of the inside frame, but not through the Title Box. Along the bottom margin, label that line 90 E.

b. From that line, measure TWO inches left and draw another vertical line. Along the bottom margin, label that line 80 E.

c. From that line, measure TWO inches left and draw another vertical line. Label that line 70 E.

When you are satisfied with your grid, use ink to go over pencil lines. Erase pencil lines.

7. Drawing the Map Outline
You will use points of latitude & longitude to draw India & its neighbors. Your teacher may provide a list of grid points which you will connect while looking closely at a map of Asia. Or, you will find grid points yourself.

To begin, use pencil dots to plot these points along the coast of India:

Connect the dots while looking at a map of Asia.

8. Once the outline of India & its neighbors is made, ink in its shape and national boundaries. Don’t forget the island nation of Sri Lanka!

9. WATER FEATURES: Color blue and label the Indian Ocean, the Bay of Bengal, and the Arabian Sea. Add rivers: the Indus, Ganges, and Brahmaputra, first in pencil, then in ink. Label rivers and cover the inked lines with blue.

10. POLITICAL BOUNDARIES: Label Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, China, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Burma, and Thailand. Color each country with a different colored pencil.

11. PHYSICAL FEATURES: Use a physical map to find the Himalaya Mountains, Deccan Plateau, Eastern and Western Ghats, Great Indian Desert, and Ganges Plain. Label. Create symbols, for mountains and deserts and use those symbol on your map.

Your teacher may ask you to put some cities on your map, too, using a dot as a symbol.