Cover each answer, write your working, then open the answer to compare. Questions run from easier to harder.
The skills come from map and graph skills. Extra reading practice is available in the map and graph reading practice tool.
Part A: position, direction and scale
Question 1. A temple is in the grid square whose lower left corner is at easting 31 and northing 66. Give its four-figure reference.
Answer
- Eastings come first (31), then northings (66).
Question 2. Town P is directly north-east of Town Q. Give the direction of Q from P.
Answer
South-west. Direction reverses when you stand at the other place.
Question 3. A map has a scale of 1:50 000. Two villages are 4.6 cm apart on the map. Find the ground distance in kilometres.
Answer
1 cm is 50 000 cm, which is 500 m. So 4.6 cm × 500 m = 2 300 m, or 2.3 km.
Question 4. A field measures 3 cm by 2 cm on a 1:25 000 map. Find its ground area in square kilometres.
Answer
1 cm is 250 m, so the field is 750 m by 500 m. The area is 375 000 m², which is 0.375 km².
Part B: contours and relief
Question 5. Contour interval is 20 m. A hill has rings reading 40, 60 and 80 m going inwards. State the minimum height of its summit.
Answer
At least 80 m. The innermost ring is 80 m, and the summit is higher than that but below 100 m if 100 m is not drawn.
Question 6. Contours on the north side of a hill are 2 mm apart, and on the south side they are 7 mm apart. Which side is steeper, and why?
Answer
The north side is steeper. The contours are closer together there, so the land rises the same height over a shorter distance.
Question 7. A V-shaped set of contours with a stream inside points to the 120 m line. Name the feature.
Answer
A valley. The V points towards higher ground and holds a stream.
Part C: choosing a graph
Question 8. Name the best graph for monthly rainfall and temperature in one town.
Answer
A combined bar and line graph: bars for rainfall on one axis and a line for temperature on the other.
Question 9. A table shows the share of energy from coal (40%), gas (35%), hydro (15%) and other sources (10%). Name a graph and check the total.
Answer
A pie chart. The shares add up to 100% (40 + 35 + 15 + 10), so they form one whole.
If you got these wrong
Questions 1 to 4 point to scale, direction and grid references. Questions 5 to 7 are covered in interpreting contours and relief.
Questions 8 and 9 link to choosing a graph type that fits the question.
To go through your working with a teacher, see online one-to-one Geography tuition.