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6th grade · Social Studies · Unit 1 of 12

World Maps & Globes

Continents, oceans and coordinates

What your child practices

Continents and oceans, hemispheres, latitude and longitude, map scale, projections and kinds of maps.

Arizona Academic Standards learning standard: 6.G1.1 · maps of the Eastern Hemisphere, latitude and longitude

How we explain it

Children can open this short lesson before they practice.

  1. There are 7 continents and 5 oceans. The Atlantic lies between the Americas and Europe and Africa.
  2. North latitude means the Northern Hemisphere; west longitude means the Western Hemisphere.
  3. Use the scale: multiply the map distance by what 1 unit stands for. A thematic map shows one topic.

Example: A map's scale says 1 cm = 50 km. Two towns are 6 cm apart. How far apart are they? Each centimeter stands for 50 km. 6 × 50 = 300. Answer: 300 km

World Maps & Globes in Arizona

In the Arizona Academic Standards, this is unit 1 of 12 in 6th grade Social Studies, before First Farmers.

Gradelings describes a child's practice on this unit as Beginning, Approaching, Meeting or Exceeding (Four practice steps). That reflects practice, not a report-card mark: the teacher decides the mark.

Source: Arizona Department of Education

Sample questions

A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.

  1. Question 1

    On a Mercator projection, why does Greenland look as big as Africa?

    • Greenland really is bigger
    • Africa is shrinking
    • Areas near the poles are stretched
    • The map is upside down

  2. Question 2

    The equator is at which latitude?

    • 180°
    • 45° N
    • 90° N
    • 0°

  3. Question 3

    Seattle is at about 47° N, 122° W. Which hemispheres is it in?

    • Southern and Western
    • Southern and Eastern
    • Northern and Eastern
    • Northern and Western

  4. Question 4

    The prime meridian is at which longitude?

    • 0°
    • 180°
    • 45° E
    • 90° W

  5. Question 5

    Which is the largest continent by area?

    • Asia
    • Australia
    • Europe
    • Africa

  6. Question 6

    Lines of longitude get closer together toward…

    • The poles
    • The oceans
    • The equator
    • The Tropic of Cancer

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