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LESSON 6 – HEIGHT ON A MAP KEY TERMS

Height

The measurement of someone or something from head to foot or from base to top.

In this situation, it means the height of the land above sea level (measured in

metres)

Contours Lines which join points of the same height together (metres above sea level).

Spot heights Points on a map which show the exact height at that particular point. They sometimes have the height written next to them.

Layer colouring

(colour shading) Bands of different colours that show areas of the same height

SHOWING HEIGHT ON A MAP

There are three ways of showing height on a map. These are described above…

Contour lines Spot Heights Layer colouring

You are going to have a go at completing an activity on the next page that relies on you using all three of

the above methods of showing height on a map.

PTO

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TASK 1 – USING CONTOURS

a) In pencil join up all the places that are 100 metres above sea level.

b) Join up all the places that are 200 metres above sea level.

c) Join up all the places that are 300 metres above sea level.

d) Join up all the places that are 400 metres above sea level.

TASK 2 – USING LAYER COLOURING

a) Fill in the key by colouring the boxes under the map.

b) Shade the map using those colours. Colour lightly in pencil.

TASK 2 – USING SPOT HEIGHTS

a) What is the height of each letter on the map?

b) Choose your heights from:

50m 470m 220m 110m 390m 520m

Letter A B C D E F

Height

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CONTOUR INTERVALS

The intervals between the contours on the diagram are 10

metres.

If you are standing on the 10 metre contour, you would need to

imagine that the ground between you and the next contour is

on a slope. As you walk towards the 20 metre line, your

elevation increases.

This means that point would at be about 15 metres.

When contours are close together, it means we are

climbing higher quickly, so the land must be steep.

When the contours are far apart, it means that we are

climbing higher slowly, so the slope must be gentler.

TASK 4

Fill in the blanks using words from the choices below

Choose from… relief contour slope close gentle

______________ lines are a good way of showing the height and __________ on a map. Contour lines

that are _________ together show a steep _________ and contour lines that are far apart show a

___________ slope

PTO

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TASK 5

Look at the images below and answer the questions…

Is this a steep or gentle slope? ____________________

How do you know? ______________________________

______________________________________________

Is this a steep or gentle slope? ____________________

How do you know? ______________________________

______________________________________________

Contours are really useful as they can tell

us about the shape of the land without

even visiting

Contours in this formation indicate a hill.

Contours in this formation indicate a river

valley,

10 20

30 40

50

50

100

150

50

100

150

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TASK 6

Match the 3D image with the correct contour line image. Write the numbers next to the letters.

A. B. C. D.

A

B

C

D

1. 2. 3. 4.

KNOWLEDGE CHECK

1. Name the three ways of showing height on a map

2. What measurement do we use to measure height on a map?

3. What does it mean when the contour lines are close together?