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MAPWORK NOTES
Conventional signs
 These are the signs or symbols to represent features on a map and their
meaning is given on the key
 Shape, size and colour are used to identify each symbol used
 Can be divided into 6 groups
(i) Boundaries – broken red line
(ii) Land routes – thin parallel black lines, space between coloured in red.
(iii) Water features – shown in blue
(iv) Vegetation – shown in green. To distinguish one type from another
different shapes or trees, bushes etc are used
(v) Buildings – shown in different ways eg villages and hut – two signs, a
dot and a pictogram
(vi) Other features

Location (grid reference)

 The National grid is a network of evenly spaced vertical and horizontal lines
drawn on a map in order to help in identifying places on a map. (These lines
make perfect squares)
 The vertical lines are numbered eastwards across the map and are called
eastings, while the horizontal lines are numbered northwards and are known
as northings
 Each square is identified by the lines which enclose its south-west (bottom
left) corner.
 When the national grid is used to give location of places this is called grid
reference.
 When locating a place always remember
(i) Always start from the bottom left (south-west) corner of the square in
which the place is found.
(ii) The easting always comes before the northing

(a) 4 figure grid reference

 Used when we want to describe the general location of a place on a
topographical map
 4-fig grid references are also known as area references
 Has 4 numbers in it. First two are for the easting and the second two are a
northing. {The easting and the northing form the bottom left (south-west)
corner of the square in which the place is found}
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(b) Six-figure grid reference

 Used to give the exact location of a place on a topographical map
 Remember that
(i) The first two numbers tell us the easting on the south-west corner
(ii) The third figure tells us how many tenths past that easting this point is
(iii) The next two numbers tell us the northing below the point
(iv) The last number tells us how many tenths above the northing this
point is

NB When a point is exactly on a line the estimate figure is zero (0)

Direction

(a) Compass direction

 The cardinal points of the compass are N, S, E and W. The angle between
each pair of cardinal points is 900
 points that are half- way between the cardinal points are called ordinal points
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The 16 points of the compass

 When talking about direction, four useful terms come to mind, these are to
the north of, the south of, the east of or the west of

(b) Bearing
 Is the angular direction of an object from the observer measured in degrees
starting from the north in a clockwise direction.
 It is the direction an object lies from the observer’s position
Procedure
 Draw a N-S line and an E-W line through the point from which you will
observe i.e. the observer’s position.
 Draw a line from the observer’s position to the object observed
 Place your protractor so that the zero (0) is placed on the north line and 180 0
on the south line. Place the centre of the protractor on the observer’s
position.
 Measure the angle made by the north-south line and the line joining the
observer to the point asked for. Read the bearing in a clockwise direction
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NB If the angle you are measuring is more than 1800, first place your protractor
along the N-S line with the zero (0) at the south. Measure the angle and add its
value to 1800.

Scale

 Is the relationship between distance on the ground and those on the map.
 Is the reduced distance between any two points on the map
corresponding to those same points on the ground.
 It tells us how many times smaller the map is than the area it represents.
 For example: a line on a map is 10cm long. Using a scale where 1cm on
the map represents 10km on the ground, the actual distance for the line
on the ground would be – 10 × 10km = 100km

Types of

1. The simple statement/Scale as a statement

 A statement written in words that tells what a distance on the map represents
in reality. Eg 1cm represents 15km

Activity

 1cm represents 10km on the ground. What is the actual distance on the
ground for 13cm; 7cm; 5.5cm; 20cm; 9.5cm?
2. Representative Fraction/RF
 Eg 1
100 000 or 1: 100 000
 A Representative Fraction always uses the same unit of measurement for
both the map and the ground ie 1cm on the map represents 100 000cm on
the ground, which is 1km.
Activity
 5cm to 500m to RF. Convert to cm ie 5cm represents 50 000 cm = 5/50 000.
The numerator must be 1.
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3. Linear scale/Line scale

 Is a numbered line.
 Represents actual distances that are shown on the map.
 Is shown by a horizontal line subdivided to show how measurements from the
map can be converted to ground measurements.

Measuring distance

(a) Straight –line distance

(i) straight-edged piece of paper
 Place a straight-edged piece of paper along the/between the two points
 Mark the two points (starting and finishing) and then transfer the straight-
edge onto the linear scale
 Place the starting point on the zero and read off the total distance to the right
of the zero
 Then place the straight-edge to the left so that the right hand mark is at the
zero, and read off the metres. Total the distance

(ii) Pair of compasses

 Open your pair of dividers or compasses wide enough to touch the centres of
the two points
 Remove your dividers/compasses carefully and transfer this measurement to
your linear scale
 Place your dividers/compasses so that the left point is on the zero. Mark and
read off the distance covered.
 If the dividers/compasses do not exactly cover a whole number, move the left
point to the nearest whole number. Measure the fraction by transferring the
right point to the zero mark and measure to the left.

NB (i) Always start measuring from zero and not from the 1 to the right of the zero.

(iii) All whole numbers are measured to the right side from zero
(iv) All fractions are measured to the left side from zero
(v) The final answer is the total from the whole numbers plus that of the
fractions
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(a) Distance along a winding course

(i) A piece of thread/string
 This is laid along the route being measured. Keep the string taut
 After measuring, straighten out the string and transfer the measured distance
onto the linear scale
(ii) A straight-edged paper
 This is aligned with the route being measured.
 Where curves occur mark on both the route and the paper before re-aligning
the next straight section.
 When compete transfer to the linear scale

Calculating areas

(a) Area of a map in the shape of a square

 Measure one side of the map.
 Convert this map distance to its real distance by referring to the scale
 Square your result.
 Give your answer in km2 or as required

(b) A rectangular map

 Measure two sides of the map(length and width)
 Convert this map distance to its real distance
 Multiply length x width
 Give your answer in km2 or whatever units are required

(c) Area of irregular maps

 Trace out or use the original map
 If traced draw in the grid squares, same size as those on the original
map.
 Calculate area of one full square.
 Count and number the full squares
 Find the total area of the full squares
 Count the number of cut/”half” squares
 Divide this number/total by 2 to convert them to full squares.
 Find their area
 Add the two figures together to find the total area

Gradient
 Is the steepness of a slope and may be expressed either as an angle
measured in degrees from the horizontal or as a proportion eg 1 in 10 i.e. for
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every 10 metres travelled horizontally there is a vertical rise in ground level of

1 metre.
 To calculate gradient between any two points, it is necessary to know;
(i) The altitude or height of each point
(ii) The distance between the two points.

Procedure
 Find the difference in height between the two points
 Measure and then convert the distance between the two points from
kms to metres
 Divide the difference in height of the two points by their distance apart
(horizontal equivalent) ie Gradient = DH/HE
 NB Both the DH and the HE should be brought to the same unit of
length. The numerator must be 1

RELIEF
 Contours are lines drawn on a map joining all places of the same
altitude/height above sea level.
 Contour interval/vertical interval is the difference in height between any two
successive contours.
 Contours tell us three things about the land
(i) The height of the land above sea level
(ii) The slope of the land
(iii) The features of the land or the landforms
 When drawing contours, remember these golden rules
(i) Contours never cross, they can meet at cliffs
(ii) Contours do not stop in the middle of a map
(iii) The VI or CI does not change on a map

Slopes
 A slope is the geographical term for the shape of the land as it ascends from
low to high ground.

Types of

(i) Uniform slope

 Contours are more or less evenly spaced from top to bottom
 Is a slope that has the same steepness from top to bottom
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(ii) Concave
 Contours are widely spaced at the lower levels and close at the top
 Is a slope that curves in.
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(iii) Convex
 At the lower altitude the slope is steep and levels off on high ground.
 It “bulges out”

(iv) Steep
 Contours are close together
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(v) Gentle
 Contours are far apart

NB

 Always check the altitude of the contour lines on a map to find which is lower
and which is higher.
 The narrower the contour line, the steeper the slope
 On 1:50 000 maps, contour lines represent rises of 20 m in the landscape
 There is nothing on the ground to mark them, they represent relief

Other ways of showing relief

(i) Spot heights – are marked on maps along some roads and on the tops of
some hills. They are not seen on the ground.
(ii) Trigonometrical beacons – are marked on maps and on the ground. They
are painted black and white and can be seen on top of prominent hills or
kopjes
(iii) Bench marks – are common along main roads and are shown on the
ground by concrete blocks with a sign and precise height.

Landforms
(i) Conical hill
 Contours form a more or less circular pattern
 It is a high round area, not as long as a mountain though
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(ii) A valley
 Contours form a V or U shape that bends backwards towards highland
 It forms a dip between two spurs
 Is a strip of lower land bordered by higher land.

(iii) A spur
 Contours are in a V or U shape that point away from highland
 It is a piece of highland that protrudes (like a finger) into lowland’

(iv) A gorge
 Contours are very close together (almost touching, hence the slope is steep)
 A very narrow, deep valley with steep sides
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(v) A cliff

 Contours are very close together and appear to be on top of each other.
 An almost vertical fall in the land.

(vi) A ridge
 Contour lines are long, close together, with a space in between.
 A long area of high land with a shallow dip (a saddle) especially at the top of
a mountain.
 A long and narrow stretch of upland with little level land along their summits.
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(vii) A plateau
 A broad area of elevated land
 A wide elevated area with more or less flat surface.
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(viii) An escarpment
 Is a ridge which has a gentle slope on one side, and a steep slope on the
other

(ix) A round topped hill

 Contours are similar to those of a conical hill but the higher contours are
widely spaced indicating leveling off.
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(x) A gap
 Is a break in the level of the land feature and is caused by erosion of the
topmost soils or rock formation

(xi) A dissected plateau

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 A plateau cut up by valleys

 One deeply cut up by streams

(xii) Col or saddle

 A dip in the skyline between two peaks
 A slight depression in a ridge of hills
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CROSS SECTION
 Used to show variations of relief from a side view
 The construction of a relief section resembles the slicing of relief from one
point to another, and viewing it from the cut side.

Steps

1.Extraction stage
 Identify the two grid lines from the map and them A and B.
 Join the two points with a straight line
 Lay a straight-edged piece of paper along the line
 Mark the two grid points onto the piece of paper
 Mark contour crossing points, rivers and other higher points along the
straight-edged paper. Label all features as you mark them.
 Write the altitude of all contours on the piece of paper

NB This should be done accurately and neatly.

2. The transferring phase

 Consider the total length of your map and draw a horizontal line on your
answer paper to act as your baseline
 Lay your transfer piece of paper on the baseline and mark off points A and B
on your answer paper. On each side of baseline draw vertical lines to mark
the end of the Section.
 Choose a vertical scale that enables you to show variations in relief. The
choice of scale must allow you to show all contour altitudes.
 Transfer all markings onto the answer paper, placing each mark at the right
altitude as guided by your vertical scale.

3.The finishing phase

 Join the marked points with a smooth pencil line/curve
 Shade the section below the relief curve
 Label and print the names of outstanding relief and drainage features on the
Section.
 Insert a suitable title at the top of the Section, then state the vertical scale
length and alignment of the relief section
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RIVER DRAINAGE
Drainage patterns

 Is the layout or plan made by rivers and their tributaries on the landscape
 They can be differentiated according to their relationship with:
(i) The slope of the land
(ii) Differences in rock hardness
(iii) Rock structure/geological structure
(iv) Nature of the catchment area

Radial

 Steams flow outwards like the spokes of a bicycle wheel

 Usually flow out from a large hill, dome or volcanic peak
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Dendritic

 A rectilinear pattern in the shape of a tree-trunk and its branches

 Streams converge on the main river from all directions and join at acute
angles
 Develop on areas of homogeneous rocks or areas with gently dipping/sloping
rocks.
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Centripetal

 Occurs where streams drain into a pan or a small lake or a depression from
surrounding highlands
 Common where the area has been downwarped
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Trellis

 A rectilinear pattern in the shape of a lattice with the chief tributaries joining
the main stream approximately at right angles. Minor tributaries also join the
chief tributaries at right angles and flow more or less parallel to the main
stream
 The main stream cuts across/through folded uplands while tributaries follow
lines of weakness or downfolds.

Rectangular

 Similar to trellis pattern

 Apart from the chief and minor tributaries joining at right angles, the
individual streams take sharp angular bends along their course
 Found in areas with well-defined lines of weakness such as faults of joins
along which the streams have extended their sources by headward erosion
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Written description
Relief

 Use compass points/cardinal points and/or grid reference

 Take note of the following
 Dissected
 Broad, flat area
 V-shaped or steep-sided valley
 Steep or gentle relief/slopes
 Hill summits
 Range of relief ie lowest and highest points
 Ridges
 Plateau
 Mountains
 Relief trends (directions)

Drainage

 Ie patterns of rivers
 Main drainage patterns ie radial, dendritic, trellis, centripetal etc.
 High or low drainage density
 Main river – name, direction of flow
 Other features or characteristics of a river eg braided, winding/meandering,
straight, wide or narrow width, tributaries, rapids, waterfalls, marshes.
 Do the rivers enter a lake or sea?

Cultivation

 Take note of commercial crops if named

 On gentler slopes
 Foot of mountains
 Avoids steep slopes
 Close to river/water course
 Close to settlement
 Along roads

Settlement

 Site – actual ground on which it is built for example;

 A flat land
 Fertile soil
 Dry point
 Foot of a hill
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 On top of a hill/hilltop
 Above flood level
 water supply
 Defence – hilltop or meander loops
 Transport – route centre
 Bridging point
 Gradient
 Aspect
 Situation – refers to the surroundings
 Mountains
 Rivers
 Coast
 Other settlements
 The sea
 Agricultural productivity of an area
 Other economic activities eg mining, tourism

NB Look for these on a map

Patterns of settlements

 Linear
 Dispersed
 Nucleated

Vegetation

 Distribution and type

 Where found – name areas, compass or grid location
 Influence of aspect ie exposure to rain bearing winds may encourage
rainforest vegetation
 Difference in vegetation between hill slopes and flatter ground.
 Mainly on steep slopes which are unsuited to other forms of land use or areas
are inaccessible.
 Plantations – evidence of afforestation

Communications

 Types and patterns

 Along valleys
 Avoids steep slopes
 On flat areas
 Through forests
 Through settlement(s)
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 Route taken eg
 Winding
 Tunnels/underpasses
 Cuttings
 Bridges
 Gaps/passes

END OF TOPIC