GradeMap

Grade 6 · Social Studies · Unit 1 of 6

Map Skills

Latitude, longitude and hemispheres

What your child practises

Reading latitude and longitude on a grid and in a table, telling which hemispheres a place is in, and knowing the continents, oceans and key lines like the equator and prime meridian.

BC Curriculum learning standard: Geographic skills for studying global issues: latitude and longitude, hemispheres, continents and oceans

Sample questions

A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.

  1. Question 1

    Is the whole country in the Northern or the Southern Hemisphere? Tap an item, then tap its basket.

    Sort into: ⬆️ Northern Hemisphere · ⬇️ Southern Hemisphere

    • 🌍Madagascar
    • 🌎Chile
    • 🌍Egypt
    • 🌎Argentina
    • 🌎Canada
    • 🌍Iceland
    Show answer

    ⬆️ Northern Hemisphere: Egypt, Canada, Iceland · ⬇️ Southern Hemisphere: Madagascar, Chile, Argentina

    Hint: The equator divides Earth into the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Picture a globe: is the country above or below the equator?

  2. Question 2

    Which city is in both the Northern and Western Hemispheres?

    World cities
    CityLatitudeLongitude
    Cape Town34°S18°E
    Ottawa45°N76°W
    Buenos Aires35°S58°W
    Nairobi1°S37°E
    • Buenos Aires
    • Cape Town
    • Ottawa
    • Nairobi
    Show answer

    Ottawa

    Hint: N latitude means the Northern Hemisphere and S means the Southern. E longitude means the Eastern Hemisphere and W means the Western.

  3. Question 3

    On this map grid, each number stands for 10° (so 3 means 30°). Up is north and right is east. Which point is at 40°S, 10°E?

    -6-6-5-5-4-4-3-3-2-2-1-100112233445566ABCD
    • Point C
    • Point D
    • Point A
    • Point B
    Show answer

    Point D

    Hint: Latitude is how far north (up) or south (down) of the equator, the 0 line across. Longitude is how far east (right) or west (left) of the prime meridian, the 0 line up and down. Latitude is written first.

  4. Question 4

    What is the smallest ocean?

    • the Arctic Ocean
    • the Indian Ocean
    • the Pacific Ocean
    • the Atlantic Ocean
    Show answer

    the Arctic Ocean

    Hint: This ocean surrounds the North Pole and is covered by sea ice for much of the year.

  5. Question 5

    Which line at 0° longitude helps divide Earth into the Eastern and Western Hemispheres?

    • the prime meridian
    • the equator
    • the Arctic Circle
    • the Tropic of Cancer
    Show answer

    the prime meridian

    Hint: This line runs from the North Pole to the South Pole through Greenwich, England.

  6. Question 6

    Which three oceans border Canada?

    🍁
    • Pacific, Indian and Atlantic
    • Pacific, Arctic and Atlantic
    • Arctic, Southern and Indian
    • Atlantic, Indian and Southern
    Show answer

    Pacific, Arctic and Atlantic

    Hint: Canada has coasts on the west, the north and the east.

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