There are different maps for different purposes. In this lesson, you'll learn more about the special uses of three maps—a road map, a shaded relief map, and a topographic map. Remember, the legend is the key to unlocking the secrets of a map.
Road maps show people how they can travel from one place to another. They also show some physical features, such as mountains and rivers, and political features, such as cities and towns.
Find and draw the map symbol for an interstate highway.
Find and draw the map symbol for a State highway.
Locate an interstate highway
Locate a State highway.
Find a road that goes into the mountains. Trace it on your road map with your pencil.
Why do you think there are so few roads northeast of the city?
Use the colored road map in the poster and map packet pages to answer these questions:
What colors are highways?
The areas around a city are shown in color on the map. What color is used for Salt
Lake City?
What color is used for bodies of water?
Shaded relief maps are designed to highlight the physical features of a place. The shading shows how a particular area looks with sunlight shining on it from a particular direction.
On your shaded relief map, draw a line down the ridge (backbone) of the Wasatch Mountains.
Locate a canyon on the map. What is its name?
What do you see at the bottom of a canyon?
Where does the water in those rivers and creeks come from?
Find and draw the symbol for airport.
Which direction is the airport from the State capitol?
The legend shows city size. Using the legend, the population of Salt Lake City is between
and
The population of Ogden is between
and
Find a town with a population of 500 to 1,000. What is the name of the town?
Use the shaded relief map in the poster and map packet pages to answer these questions:
What are the major colors on the map?
What does each color represent?
The topographic map uses contour lines to show elevation (height above sea level). Contour lines join points of equal elevation above a specified reference, such as sea level.
Think of a contour line as an imaginary line on the ground that takes any path necessary to maintain constant elevation. Run your pen or pencil along the entire 5,000-foot contour line on your topographic map. Then run your pen or pencil along another contour line. This will help you feel the shape of the land.
When the contour lines are close together, the ground is steep. Put an X on your map on a steep area.
Which is steeper, the area to the north or south of the police firing range?
Find and draw a symbol for a school.
Draw a circle around a school on the map.
How high is Ensign peak?
What is the elevation of the jeep trail northwest of the State capitol?
Draw the symbol for railroad.
Using the topographic map in the poster and map packet pages, answer these questions:
What is the color used for rivers or creeks?
What colors are highways?
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