Map Skills Challenge: Navigation TaskActivities & Teaching Strategies
Active learning works well for map skills because students develop spatial reasoning through physical movement and real-time problem solving. These tasks let learners test abstract concepts like scale and contour lines in tangible ways, making abstract ideas concrete and memorable.
Learning Objectives
- 1Calculate the actual distance between two points on an Ordnance Survey map using its scale.
- 2Evaluate the most efficient route between two given points on a map, considering terrain and distance.
- 3Justify the selection of a specific route by referencing map features like contour lines and paths.
- 4Demonstrate the use of a compass to take a bearing for a specific leg of a planned route.
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Orienteering Circuit: School Grounds Challenge
Print OS map excerpts of school grounds with 6-8 control points marked by symbols. Students use compasses to plot bearings and grid references to locate points, punching cards at each. Debrief as a class to compare routes and discuss terrain impacts.
Prepare & details
Analyze the most efficient route between two points on a map.
Facilitation Tip: In the Orienteering Circuit activity, walk the school grounds with students first to point out key landmarks and symbols they will encounter.
Setup: Group tables with puzzle envelopes, optional locked boxes
Materials: Puzzle packets (4-6 per group), Lock boxes or code sheets, Timer (projected), Hint cards
Route Planning Pairs: Urban Explorer
Provide OS maps of a local area with start and end points. Pairs measure distances, note obstacles like rivers or hills via contours, and sketch optimal paths with justifications. Pairs present routes to class for peer feedback.
Prepare & details
Evaluate the best strategies for navigating challenging terrain using map and compass.
Facilitation Tip: During Route Planning Pairs, ask students to explain their route choices to each other before they mark them on the map.
Setup: Group tables with puzzle envelopes, optional locked boxes
Materials: Puzzle packets (4-6 per group), Lock boxes or code sheets, Timer (projected), Hint cards
Compass Relay: Terrain Tactics
Set up a relay course with cones representing map features. Teams draw bearings from a shared OS map snippet, run to navigate accurately, and tag next teammate. Rotate roles and score based on precision.
Prepare & details
Justify the importance of accurate map reading for safety and exploration.
Facilitation Tip: For the Compass Relay, demonstrate proper compass handling and have students practice grid-to-magnetic conversion together before starting.
Setup: Group tables with puzzle envelopes, optional locked boxes
Materials: Puzzle packets (4-6 per group), Lock boxes or code sheets, Timer (projected), Hint cards
Individual Map Quest: Safety Scenarios
Give students OS maps with hypothetical scenarios like a lost hiker. They annotate safest routes, citing symbols and scales. Share solutions in a whole-class gallery walk to highlight varied strategies.
Prepare & details
Analyze the most efficient route between two points on a map.
Setup: Group tables with puzzle envelopes, optional locked boxes
Materials: Puzzle packets (4-6 per group), Lock boxes or code sheets, Timer (projected), Hint cards
Teaching This Topic
Teach map skills by modeling the thinking process aloud as you navigate. Emphasize that map reading is a skill that improves with practice and mistakes are valuable learning opportunities. Avoid rushing through concepts; let students struggle productively with terrain challenges before providing support.
What to Expect
Students will confidently use Ordnance Survey maps to identify symbols, apply grid references, measure distances, and interpret terrain. They will justify route choices using evidence from map features and collaborate effectively to solve navigation challenges.
These activities are a starting point. A full mission is the experience.
- Complete facilitation script with teacher dialogue
- Printable student materials, ready for class
- Differentiation strategies for every learner
Watch Out for These Misconceptions
Common MisconceptionDuring Orienteering Circuit: School Grounds Challenge, watch for students assuming the shortest straight line between two points is always fastest.
What to Teach Instead
Have students time their own routes and compare energy use on different paths; then ask them to present findings to the class to highlight why terrain features matter.
Common MisconceptionDuring Route Planning Pairs: Urban Explorer, watch for students thinking map symbols represent exact visual likenesses of real features.
What to Teach Instead
Ask pairs to find three symbols on their map and match them to actual features in the schoolyard, then discuss how symbols are standardized conventions rather than photographs.
Common MisconceptionDuring Compass Relay: Terrain Tactics, watch for students believing compasses always point to true north without adjustment.
What to Teach Instead
Provide declination information on maps and have teams adjust their bearings before navigating; collect and review their angle calculations to correct misunderstandings.
Assessment Ideas
After Orienteering Circuit: School Grounds Challenge, collect each student's marked route and ask them to identify grid references for three key checkpoints and calculate distances between them using the map scale.
During Route Planning Pairs: Urban Explorer, listen for pairs explaining their route choices using map features like paths, water bodies, and elevation changes; ask probing questions about energy efficiency and safety.
After Compass Relay: Terrain Tactics, have students write one sentence explaining how contour lines help navigate elevation and one sentence describing when magnetic declination must be accounted for in navigation.
Extensions & Scaffolding
- Challenge students to plan a route that avoids all roads, using only footpaths and natural features, and time their navigation.
- For students who struggle, provide a simplified map with fewer contour lines and pre-labeled symbols to reduce cognitive load.
- Have students research the history of their local area and mark historical sites on their maps, connecting navigation to social history.
Key Vocabulary
| Ordnance Survey map | A detailed map of Great Britain produced by the Ordnance Survey, showing physical features, administrative boundaries, and man-made structures. |
| Scale | The ratio between a distance on a map and the corresponding distance on the ground, used to measure real-world distances from the map. |
| Grid reference | A system of lines on a map that divides it into squares, used to locate specific points by giving their horizontal and vertical position. |
| Contour lines | Lines on a map that connect points of equal elevation, showing the shape and steepness of the land's surface. |
| Compass bearing | A specific direction measured in degrees clockwise from North, used with a compass to navigate. |
Suggested Methodologies
Planning templates for Global Explorers: Our Changing World
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Map Projections: Representing a Sphere
Understand the challenges of representing a 3D Earth on a 2D map and explore different map projections.
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Ordnance Survey Symbols and Features
Master the interpretation of standard Ordnance Survey map symbols and their real-world equivalents.
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Grid References and Location
Practice using four-figure and six-figure grid references to precisely locate features on Ordnance Survey maps.
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Scale and Distance Calculation
Learn to interpret map scales (ratio, linear, and verbal) and calculate real-world distances.
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Contour Lines and Relief
Understand how contour lines represent elevation and interpret relief features like hills, valleys, and slopes.
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