Araling Panlipunan / Montessori Geography

Mapa, Globo, Latitud, Longhitud, at Mga Espesyal na Guhit

Araling panlipunan / geography lesson and worksheets on maps, globes, latitude, longitude, and the imaginary lines of the earth

Have you ever needed to go to a place but you weren’t sure where it is?

Have you ever wondered why it doesn’t snow in the Philippines?

How did you try to find the answers to your questions?

People use maps and globes to find the location of a place and to look at where it is in relation to other places.

Maps and globes help us understand, for example:

Why it snows in South Korea but not in the Philippines – the globe will show us that the Philippines is near the middle of the earth, where it’s too hot for snow to form, while South Korea is farther north, where it does get cold enough for snow to form (P.S. Do you remember what north is? Do you know the other cardinal directions?)
How to get to South Korea from the Philippines – there are seas between the two countries, so we can’t take a car and will have to go by plane
How to get to the airport in our city – a map will show us what roads to take from our house to the airport

But what is a map? What is a globe? Are they the same? If they aren’t, how are they different from each other? Are there things we can use a map for that we can’t do with a globe?

Let’s find out!

Mapa at Globo: Kahulugan

Globo (Globe)

The earth is like a big ball, what we call a sphere.

But it’s so big that the only way we can look at the earth as a whole is if we go to outer space and view the earth from a distance.

A globe is like a small version of the earth. It shows the geography of the world — all the land forms and all the bodies of water in the exact location and distance to each other as they are in the real Earth.

The imaginary line that runs through the middle of the earth is called the equator. It divides the earth into two equal halves: the northern hemisphere and the southern hemisphere. The northernmost point of the earth is called the north pole, while the southernmost point is called the south pole.

Ang globo ay replika o modelo ng mundo. Ginagamit ito upang matukoy at mailarawan ang katangiang heograpikal ng mundo tulad ng lokasyon, anyo, hugis, laki, layo, at direksiyon ng mga bansa.
Sa globo makikita ang kabuuang larawan kung saan nakalagay o nakapuwesto ang bawat bansa, mga karagatan, at mga kontinente.
Ang guhit sa gitna ng globo ay tinatawag na ekwador. Hinahati nito ang globo sa dalawang magsinlaking bahagi. Ang bahaging nasa itaas ng ekwador ay tinatawag na hilagang hatingglobo, samantalang ang bahaging nasa ibaba ng ekwador ay tinatawag na timog hatingglobo.
Ang magkabilang dulo ng mundo na kapwa pinakamalayo sa ekwador ay tinatawag na mga polo. Ang dalawang polo ng mundo ay ang polong hilaga at polong timog.
Hindi nakikita sa globo ang mga maliliit na lugar.

Advantage:
Because it is spherical (ball-shaped) the globe is a much more accurate representation of the earth. Unlike in flat maps, the size, shape, distance, and other characteristics of land and water elements do not get distorted.

Disadvantage:
Globes can only show the big picture — an overall view — of the earth. Smaller places such as individual towns and streets cannot be seen in a globe.

Mapa (Map)

A map is a flat representation of a particular place.

Unlike a globe, which always shows the whole world, a map can show the entire earth or just a very tiny part of it. There are continent maps, country maps, city maps, or even maps of just a single building.

A map, like a globe, can show the geography of a place, or it can be used to show the specific characteristics of places — and how they differ from each other — in things like climate or population or disaster risk.

Ang mapa ay patag na representasyon ng isang lugar.
Depende sa uri ng mapa, maaaring ipakita nito ang hangganang heograpikal, politikal, dami ng populasyon, o katangian ng ekonomiya ng isang bansa.
Mga nakikita sa mapa:
1. lokasyon ng mga lugar
2. hugis ng mga lugar
3. distansiya sa pagitan ng isang lugar at iba pang lugar
4. direksiyon mula sa iba’t ibang lugar
5. eskala

Mga Guhit sa Globo: Latitud at Longhitud (Latitude and Longitude)

Strictly speaking, latitude refers to a place’s distance north or south of the equator (the line dividing the earth into northern and southern hemispheres).

However, people also use the term “latitude” to refer to the imaginary lines that go around the earth east-west parallel to the equator. If the earth is drawn with its north pole at the very top and the south pole at the very bottom, the latitudinal lines would be horizontal in position, just like the equator.

The lines of latitude are also called “parallels.”
The distance of a place to the north or south of the equator is measured in degrees latitude. The equator is at 0° latitude while the poles are at 90° latitude.

Longitude — a place’s distance east or west from the prime meridian — is used to refer to the imaginary lines that connect the north and south poles. The longitudinal lines are perpendicular to the latitudinal lines and are vertical in position when the earth is drawn upright.

The lines of longitude are also called “meridians.”
The meridian at 0° longitude is called the prime meridian.

Together, the lines of latitude and longitude form a grid that helps us specify the location of a place relative to the equator and the prime meridian.

The location of the Eiffel Tower, for example, is given as 48.8584° N, 2.2945° E — that is, it is around 48° north of the equator and 2° east of the prime meridian.
The Machu Picchu, on the other hand, is at 13.1631° S, 72.5450° W — 13° south of the equator and 72° west of the prime meridian.

Latitud

mga pahigang guhit na paikot sa globo, kahanay ng ekwador
ginagamit sa pagsukat ng layo ng isang lugar, pahilaga at patimog, mula sa ekwador
tinatawag ding “parallel” ang mga guhit latitud
ang layo o distansiya ng isang lugar mula sa ekwador pahilaga at patimog ay sinusukat sa digri (°) latitud
ang ekwador ay nasa 0° latitud samantalang ang mga polo ay nasa 90° latitud

Longhitud

mga patayong guhit na paikot sa globo na kahanay ng punong meridyano
ginagamit sa pagsukat ng layo ng isang lugar, pasilangan at pakanluran, mula sa punong meridyano
nag-uugnay ang mga ito sa pulong hilaga at pulong timog
tinatawag ding “meridian” ang mga guhit longhitud at ang mga ito ay sinusukat din sa digri (°)
ang punong meridyano ay nasa 0° longhitud at ito ang nagsisilbing batayan sa pagsasabi ng layo ng isang lugar pasilangan o pakanluran

Grid o parilya

nabubuo kapag pinagsama o nagkatagpu-tagpo ang mga guhit latitud at guhit longhitud
ginagamit sa paghahanap ng tiyak na kinalalagyan ng isang lugar

Mga Espesyal na Guhit sa Globo

The most notable imaginary lines in the globe are the following:

Equator – the imaginary line designated 0° latitude that is equidistant (the same distance) at all its points from the north pole and the south pole
Prime meridian – the imaginary line designated 0° longitude that passes through Greenwich in England
International date line – the imaginary line at 180° longitude (directly opposite the prime meridian) that serves as the boundary between one calendar day and the next
Tropic of Cancer – the imaginary line of latitude around 23.5° north of the equator, special because it is the northernmost latitude where the Sun can be seen directly overhead
Tropic of Capricorn – the imaginary line of latitude around 23.5° south of the equator, special because it is the southernmost latitude where the Sun can be seen directly overhead
Arctic Circle – the imaginary line of latitude around 66.5° north of the equator, special because in the entire region north of this circle:
- the Sun is above the horizon for 24 continuous hours at least once per year (that is, visible even at midnight), and
- the Sun is below the horizon for 24 continuous hours at least once per year (that is, not visible even at noon)
Antarctic Circle – the imaginary line of latitude around 66.5° south of the equator, special because in the entire region south of this circle:
- the Sun is above the horizon for 24 continuous hours at least once per year (that is, visible even at midnight), and
- the Sun is below the horizon for 24 continuous hours at least once per year (that is, not visible even at noon)

Ekwador – pinakagitna at pangunahing guhit na latitud; matatagpuan sa 0° latitud; humahati sa globo sa hilaga at timog hating-globo
Punong Meridyano – pinakagitna at pangunahing guhit na longhitud; matatagpuan sa 0° longhitud; tinatawag ding Greenwich Meridian
Pandaigdigang Guhit ng Petsa – dito nangyayari ang pagpapalit ng petsa; matatagpuan sa 180° meridyano
Tropiko ng Kanser o Hilagang Tropiko – ang pinakahilagang latitud kung saan maaaring magpakita ang Araw ng diretso sa ibabaw sa tanghali
Tropiko ng Kaprikorn o Katimugang Tropiko – ang pinakatimog na latitud kung saan maaaring tuwirang lumitaw ang araw sa dagat o sa lupa tuwing gabi
Kabilugang Artiko – guhit latitud sa bandang 66.5° hilaga ng ekwador
Kabilugang Antartiko – guhit latitud sa bandang 66.5° timog ng ekwador
Sinasabing nasa mababang latitud ang lahat ng lugar na nasa pagitan ng Tropiko ng Kanser at Tropiko ng Kaprikorn.
Sinasabing nasa gitnang latitud ang mga lugar na:
- nasa pagitan ng Tropiko ng Kanser at Kabilugang Artiko
- nasa pagitan ng Tropiko ng Kaprikorn at Kabilugang Antartiko
Sinasabing nasa mataas na latitud ang mga lugar na:
- nasa pagitan ng Kabilugang Artiko at Polong Hilaga
- nasa pagitan ng Kabilugang Antartiko at Polong Timog

Mapa at Globo Worksheets

The worksheets below are designed to help you master the concept of maps and globes, latitude and longitude, and the “special” imaginary lines of the earth.

The worksheets are arranged from the most basic to the most comprehensive. The first worksheet is very easy: identifying a map and globe based on their definition. The next couple of worksheets are for identifying the lines used in a globe or map. The quiz is for assessing if you remember the most essential parts of the lesson.

Links to the printable versions of the worksheet (as well as the English version, if available) will be found right under the worksheet title.

Note on the Worksheets

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