Newsletter (Geography) Latitude Longitude

Check out the free reading, science cards to printout.

The earth is a sphere shape. The earth is divided up into circles. These circles measure where things are located on the earth.

Here are two types of measurements that use circles:

Longitude

Longitude is used to measure positions of east and west.. A line of longitude is called a meridian and it is a straight line along the circumference of the earth from the north to south pole. Each meridian is the same length. The prime meridian travels through Greenwich, England. This is considered 0 degrees longitude.

Latitude

To measure positions of north and south, latitude is used. A line of latitude is called a parallel and is parallel to the equator. Parallels vary in length. The longest parallel is at the equator and the shortest are at the poles. The equator has latitude zero. The north pole has latitude 90 degrees north and the south pole has latitude 90 degrees south.

Here are three part cards for longitude and latitude.

Degrees and Measuring Angles

A circle is divided into 360 parts. One of these 360 parts is called a degree. Each degree is divided into 60 minutes and each minute is divided into 60 seconds. Understanding how to read an analog clock makes this concept easier to understand.

Introducing Longitude and Latitude

To introduce longitude and latitude in a concrete way take a spherical balloon or ball and draw circles representing longitude and latitude on it. See the three part cards for a pattern of how to do this.

Coordinate Game

Here's a fun activity to practice coordinates

First start with this map and these cards. Match each card to the corresponding city on the map, being sure to note the longitude and latitude.

After students have mastered the map with labels use this map without labels. The student will have to use the coordinates and grid lines to match the label to the point.

Use this blank map and have the student mark the cities with a marker, pencil or push-pin.