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Social Studies · World Geography
Reading Maps & Coordinates
Earth has an invisible grid made of latitude and longitude lines. Together they give every place its own exact address!
🧭Two Kinds of Lines
↔️LATITUDE
Which way?Run side to side, like the rungs of a ladder 🪜
MeasuresHow far North or South you are
📏 Main line = the Equator
↕️LONGITUDE
Which way?Run up and down — think "LONG-itude" is long & tall
MeasuresHow far East or West you are
📏 Main line = the Prime Meridian
🌍 Two main lines cut Earth into 4 hemispheres
The Equator (across) splits North & South
The Prime Meridian (down) splits East & West
A hemisphere is just half of the Earth 🌐
📍Finding an Exact Spot
1A coordinate is an ordered pair written as (latitude, longitude) — always latitude first!
2Slide along the latitude line to 30°N, then up the longitude line to 60°W.
3Where they cross 📍 is your one exact spot: (30°N, 60°W) — just like calling a square in Battleship! 🚢
🔑Key Terms
↔️Latitude Lines running east–west that measure how far north or south you are.
↕️Longitude Lines running north–south that measure how far east or west you are.
🟠Equator The line at 0° latitude that splits Earth into Northern & Southern halves.
🟣Prime Meridian The line at 0° longitude that splits Earth into Eastern & Western halves.
🌐Hemisphere Half of the Earth — Northern, Southern, Eastern, or Western.
🎯Coordinate An ordered pair (latitude, longitude) that names one exact location.
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Remember: every place on Earth has its own latitude–longitude pair — like a home address for any spot on the planet!