Understand the idea.
A view from above
A plan shows a place as if you were looking down from above. On a classroom plan, table shapes show where the tables are, rather than what their sides look like. Use their positions to work out what is nearby.
Read the clues
Read the labels, the symbol key and any direction note before using a map. A symbol can mean different things on different maps. Here north is up, but the simple sketches do not show exact distances. Left and right mean the reader’s view of the page.
See the method in action.
Read a classroom plan
From the reader’s view, what is on the right of the two tables in the classroom plan?
Worked solution
- 1
Find the two round tables.
They are the pair of circles in the middle of the classroom plan.
- 2
Look to their right on the page.
The question uses the reader’s right, so the plan stays in its shown position.
- 3
Read the label beside them.
The rectangle on that side is labelled reading mat.
The reading mat.
Find the place above
On the map, which place is directly above the park?
Worked solution
- 1
Find the park on the map.
Its label is in the bottom-left place.
- 2
Look straight up, keeping the same column.
Directly above does not mean diagonally across to the other column.
- 3
Read the place you reach.
The school is in the top-left place, directly above the park.
The school.
Try it yourself.
Check your understanding
On the four-place map, which place is above the pond?
Show answer & reasoning
The library.
Find the pond at the bottom right, then look straight up in the same column. The library is above it.
Keep practising
6 worksheet questions
Read the questions online
- On the classroom plan, name the feature along the top wall.
- Where is the door on the classroom plan: top right or bottom left, as the reader sees it?
- On the four-place map, name the place to the right of the school on the page.
- Does this map let you find the exact number of metres from the school to the pond? Explain.
- A map key says a small star means a drinking tap. What does a star on that map show?
- Draw a simple plan of a room. On your page, put a door at the bottom, a table in the middle and a reading corner on the right.
Read the worked solutions
- On the classroom plan, name the feature along the top wall.
The long narrow rectangle at the top is labelled Board.
The board. - Where is the door on the classroom plan: top right or bottom left, as the reader sees it?
Read the Door label near the lower-left corner.
Bottom left. - On the four-place map, name the place to the right of the school on the page.
Both are in the top row.
The library. - Does this map let you find the exact number of metres from the school to the pond? Explain.
The map says it is not to scale and gives no distances.
No. - A map key says a small star means a drinking tap. What does a star on that map show?
Use the meaning given in that map’s key.
A drinking tap. - Draw a simple plan of a room. On your page, put a door at the bottom, a table in the middle and a reading corner on the right.
Check all three positions: door below, table central, reading corner to the right.
Any labelled bird’s-eye plan placing those three features as stated.
Curriculum reference & lesson scope
Australian Curriculum v9 and SA Curriculum Mathematics
Familiar maps; locating features; following and describing routes.
Official curriculum source ↗