Latitude/Longitude Ideas

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Latitude/Longitude Ideas
By JES

We use manipulatives called "string maps."

Copy a map (with L/L lines) on cardstock and laminate.
Tie a red string/yarn around the card parallel to the equator. Tie it tight enough to stay in place but loose
enough to enable students to slide it up and down to represent any degree of latitude during its use. (The idea of red can be connected to red = hot = equator = a parallel = line of latitude.)
Tie a blue string/yarn around the card parallel to the prime meridian. Tie it tight enough to stay in place but loose enough to enable students to slide it to the left or right to represent any

degree of longitude during its use. (The idea of blue can be connected to blue = cold = the Poles = top to bottom = lines of longitude.)
Now you are ready to practice locating a place by calling out its degrees of latitude and longitude. Students slide the red yarn north or south as they locate the line of latitude, and they slide the blue yarn east or west as they locate the line of longitude. Where the red and the blue yarn intersect will the place you called.
Have fun locating with this hands-on geography ativity!