6.1 Introduction and key concepts (EMG4P)

In this chapter we will learn how to work with scale, maps and seating plans. Maps and plans are visual representations of the real world around us - for example a school, a town, a movie theatre or a shopping centre. They are tools that can help us find our way around a new environment, or find a particular place, like one shop in a shopping centre or your seat in a sports stadium.

In this chapter we will learn how to:

• use the number scale and the bar scale, and understand the advantages and disadvantages of both and what happens when we resize maps.
• estimate actual distance or length when given a scale map and calculate scaled measurements when given the actual distance or length.
• read maps and seating plans in order to describe the position of an object in relation to surrounding objects.
• find locations and follow and develop directions for travelling between two or more locations.

Scale

The scale of a map is a ratio of the distance on the map to the actual distance on the ground or in real life. for example, a number scale of \(\text{1}\) : \(\text{100}\) means that \(\text{1}\) unit on the map represents \(\text{100}\) units on the ground or in reality (so \(\text{1}\) \(\text{cm}\) on the map = \(\text{100}\) \(\text{cm}\) = \(\text{1}\) \(\text{m}\) on the ground).