By the end of this topic, pupils should be able to:
Explain the meaning of a map.
Identify different types of maps used in daily life.
Name the main parts of a simple map (title, key, compass direction, scale and frame).
Give examples of maps they see around them (school map, village map, Tanzania map).
State why maps are useful to people.
1. Key Terms and Concepts
Before we begin, let us learn the important words in this topic. Read each word aloud and then read what it means.
Map A drawing that shows part or the whole of the Earth’s surface on a flat surface such as paper, a wall or a screen.
Earth’s surface The outside of the Earth — the land, water bodies and everything we can see on it.
Scale The relationship between the size of things on a map and their real size on the ground.
Key (or Legend) The part of a map that explains what the symbols and colours mean.
Compass direction The direction shown by a compass (North, South, East, West) that helps us orient the map correctly.
Title The name of the map that tells us what the map is about.
Frame The border or line drawn around a map to make it neat and complete.
Sketch map A simple map drawn roughly by hand to show the main features of a place.
Atlas A book that contains many different maps.
Symbol A small drawing, colour or mark used on a map to stand for a real thing (for example a black square for a school).
🌍 Did You Know?
The oldest known maps were drawn more than 4,000 years ago on clay tablets in ancient Mesopotamia (today’s Iraq). People needed maps long before paper was invented!
When you look at a map of Tanzania in your atlas, you are looking at a picture of more than 945,000 square kilometres of land and water, drawn small enough to fit on one page.
2. Meaning of Maps
A map is a drawing that shows part or the whole of the Earth’s surface on a flat surface such as paper, a wall, a blackboard or a phone screen.
Maps help us to see places that are too big to look at all at once. For example:
A map of your school shows classrooms, the playground, the office and the gate.
A map of your village shows houses, the road, the river, the market and the school.
A map of Tanzania shows all the regions, lakes, mountains and the Indian Ocean.
A map of Africa shows all the countries on the continent.
A map of the world shows all the continents and oceans.
Why do we need maps?
The Earth is very large. We cannot see the whole country or the whole world from where we stand. A map makes the large area small so that we can study it easily. Maps also show us the position of places and the direction from one place to another.
📍 Geography Around Us
Look at the walls of your classroom or the teacher’s table. Is there a map of Tanzania? That map is a picture of the whole country drawn small. The real Tanzania is thousands of times bigger than the picture on the wall!
Maps are not the same as pictures or photographs
A photograph shows exactly what the camera saw at one moment.
A map is a special drawing that uses symbols, colours and a scale so that we can understand many different things at the same time (roads, rivers, schools, mountains, and more).
3. Types of Maps We Meet in Class Three
There are many kinds of maps. In Class Three we mainly meet these simple types:
Type of map
What it shows
Example
Sketch map
A simple hand-drawn map of a small area
A map of your classroom or the way from home to school
School map
Buildings, playground and paths inside the school
The plan hanging in the head teacher’s office
Village / town map
Roads, houses, market, river and important places
A map of your village drawn by the teacher
Country map
Regions, lakes, mountains and borders of a country
Map of Tanzania in the atlas
Atlas map
Many different maps collected in one book
Your school atlas
🌍 Did You Know?
Every good map has a title so that anyone who looks at it knows what the map is about.
Even a simple drawing of the way from your desk to the blackboard is a kind of map — it shows direction and position!
4. Important Parts of a Map
A good map has several important parts. When you draw or read a map, always look for these:
Title — tells us the name of the place or what the map shows (for example “Map of Our School” or “Map of Tanzania”).
Frame (border) — a neat line drawn around the whole map.
Key (or Legend) — explains the meaning of the symbols and colours used on the map. For example:
■ black square = school
▲ blue triangle = mountain
— red line = main road
≈ blue wavy line = river
Compass direction (North arrow) — shows which way is North. Once we know North, we can find South, East and West.
Scale — tells us how the size on the map relates to the real size on the ground (we learn more about scale in later topics).
✏️ Try This
Take a blank piece of paper. Draw a simple map of your classroom. Put a title at the top, draw a frame around it, make a small key for the door, windows and teacher’s desk, and add a North arrow. You have just drawn your first proper map!
✅ Quick Revision — Meaning of Maps
1. What is a map?
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A map is a drawing that shows part or the whole of the Earth’s surface on a flat surface such as paper, a wall or a screen.
2. Name any three types of maps.
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Any three of: sketch map, school map, village/town map, country map, atlas map.
3. List four important parts of a good map.
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Title, frame (border), key (legend), compass direction (North arrow). Scale is also accepted.
4. Why do we use symbols on maps?
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Symbols stand for real things (schools, rivers, roads, mountains) so that many different features can be shown clearly on a small drawing.
5. What does the key (legend) of a map do?
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The key explains what the symbols and colours on the map mean.
5. End of Topic Questions
PART A: Choose the most correct answer
1. A map is best described as:
A. A photograph of the Earth
B. A drawing of part or the whole of the Earth’s surface
C. A story about places
D. A list of towns and villages
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B. A drawing of part or the whole of the Earth’s surface.
2. Which of the following is not a part of a good map?
A. Title
B. Key
C. Story
D. Compass direction
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C. Story. A map has a title, key, compass direction, scale and frame — not a story.
3. The part of a map that explains the meaning of symbols is called the:
A. Title
B. Key (legend)
C. Frame
D. Scale
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B. Key (legend).
4. A simple map drawn by hand to show the main features of a place is called a:
A. Photograph
B. Sketch map
C. Globe
D. Atlas only
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B. Sketch map.
5. Why do we need maps?
A. To make the large Earth small so we can study places easily
B. To replace all photographs
C. To tell stories only
D. To count the number of people
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A. To make the large Earth small so we can study places easily.
PART B: Short answer questions
1. Define the word “map”.
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A map is a drawing that shows part or the whole of the Earth’s surface on a flat surface such as paper, a wall or a screen.
2. Name any four important parts of a map.
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Title, frame (border), key (legend), compass direction (North arrow). Scale is also correct.
3. Give three examples of maps you can find at school or at home.
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Any three of: school map, map of Tanzania, atlas map, map of Africa, village map, world map, classroom sketch map.
4. What is the difference between a map and a photograph?
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A photograph shows exactly what the camera saw at one moment. A map is a special drawing that uses symbols, colours and a scale so that many different features can be shown and understood clearly.
5. Why is a key important on a map?
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The key explains the meaning of the symbols and colours so that anyone who looks at the map can understand what each mark stands for.
6. Topic Summary
A map is a drawing of part or the whole of the Earth’s surface on a flat surface.
Maps help us to study large places that we cannot see all at once.
Common types of maps for Class Three include sketch maps, school maps, village maps, country maps and atlas maps.
Every good map should have a title, a frame, a key, a compass direction and (later) a scale.
Symbols on a map stand for real things such as schools, rivers, roads and mountains.
Ready for Topic 2: Earth’s Compass Direction?
Continue Class Three Geography and Environment in the Click Online Academy app — all topics, exercises and answers in your pocket.