Investigation

How can we show the location, shapes, and kinds of land and water in a place?

Key Words

Map

A drawing that shows where things are located on the ground.

Landform

A shape on the Earth's surface, like a mountain or a valley.

Symbol

A small picture on a map that stands for a real thing.

Shapes of Land and Water

Landforms

Mountains are tall and pointy. Valleys are low areas between mountains.

Bodies of Water

Lakes are filled with water surrounded by land. Islands are land surrounded by water.

Maps use different colors to show these shapes clearly.

Reading a Map

Maps use colors & symbols. Green often means land/forests.

Blue means water like rivers or lakes.

Small pictures show where we find plants or animals.

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Let's Make a Map!

Get creative 🖼️​

Draw a map of a place you know or imagine! Include landforms (mountains, hills), water (lakes, rivers, oceans), and where plants/animals might live.

What you'll need: 🎨​ 🖌️​

Paper, Crayons or Markers