Measure the Map

Use a graphic scale to find distances.

Warm-up, learn, try it together, practice, then a quick check. About 15 minutes.

What children learn in Level 1

Welcome to your toolbox! This year you'll travel from cowboys on the cattle trails all the way to the Internet. You'll need the tools that historians and mapmakers use.
A map shows real land much smaller. The graphic scale is the bar in the corner. It tells how far a real distance is. On this map, the bar stands for 500 miles.
Lay the bar along the way from San Francisco to Denver. It fits about 2 times. 2 times 500 is 1,000, so the cities are about 1,000 miles apart.
Scales change from map to map, so always check. On this map, one bar stands for 250 miles, so the same trip takes 4 bars. 4 times 250 is still about 1,000 miles.
Try it with a grown-up: mark a strip of paper with a map's scale, and measure a trip your family has taken.

Georgia Standards of Excellence in Social Studies:

MGS.5 — Map and Globe Skill 5: use graphic scales to determine distances on a map (mastered in Grade 5)