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My Classroom Map

Draw a bird's-eye plan of your classroom and label the desks, door and windows.

  • Define and explain My Classroom Map in your own words
  • Use key terms such as map accurately
  • Apply what you have learned to new examples and questions
  • Avoid the common mistakes learners make with this topic

Every map is a picture of a place seen from above. In this chapter you will draw plans of your classroom and school, learn the symbols map-makers use, and explore the streets around your home.

This lesson focuses on My Classroom Map: draw a bird's-eye plan of your classroom and label the desks, door and windows.

Definition: My Classroom Map

Draw a bird's-eye plan of your classroom and label the desks, door and windows.

Key ideas

Plans show places from above

A plan is a simple map of a small area, such as a classroom. Because it is drawn from directly above, things look different from usual: a table becomes a rectangle and a door becomes a gap in a wall. Drawing plans helps you notice where things are in relation to each other.

Symbols keep maps tidy

Writing the word 'playground' across a map would cover it up, so map-makers use small symbols instead. The key tells the reader what each symbol means. The same symbol can be reused many times — one tree symbol can mark every tree in a park.

Key term — map: A drawing that shows a place as it looks from above, usually smaller than the real place.

Reading a plan of a classroom

You are given a plan of a classroom with a key. The symbol for the teacher's desk is a star. How do you find where the teacher sits?

Look at the key and find the star symbol to confirm it means the teacher's desk. Scan the plan from above until you spot the star. Describe its position using fixed clues, for example 'by the window, opposite the door'. Check the door symbol so you can give directions: 'turn left as you come in'.

Answer: The teacher's desk is the square marked with a star, beside the window and opposite the door — you reach it by turning left as you enter.

Common mistakes
  • Mixing up left and right on the plan Left and right on a plan depend on which way you are facing. Use fixed clues instead: 'near the door', 'by the window', 'next to the book corner'.
  • Thinking the symbol is the real size A tree symbol on a map is far smaller than a real tree. Symbols are not drawn to size; they just mark positions.

Practice

A plan shows your classroom from above. What shape would a round table be on the plan?
Think about looking straight down at it.

A circle.

What is a map?
Think about the view it shows.

A drawing of a place as seen from above.

Why do maps use symbols?
Imagine writing long words all over a small map.

Symbols save space and keep the map clear and easy to read.

Where do you look to find out what a symbol means?
It is usually in a box at the side of the map.

In the key (sometimes called the legend).

Quick check

My Classroom Map — quick check

Which of these best defines "map"?

A drawing that shows a place as it looks from above, usually smaller than the real place.

Is a river a human or a physical feature?

Physical — rivers are natural.

Is a road a human or a physical feature?

Human — roads are built by people.
Key takeaways
  • My Classroom Map: draw a bird's-eye plan of your classroom and label the desks, door and windows.
  • Plans show places from above: A plan is a simple map of a small area, such as a classroom.
  • aerial view: Seeing a place from directly above, like a bird flying over it.
  • Watch out for: mixing up left and right on the plan
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