Talk About It: How Do Maps Help Us?
"The Big Gathering" is when Native people from all over Alaska gather every year to make plans and support each other. Some people have to travel a long way because Alaska is so big.”
Maps can help us in so many ways. They can show us where places or people are located, they can tell us the names of geographic features such as rivers or mountains, they can tell us how to get from one place to another. Watch this video of Molly with your child and then answer the questions below.
Molly is so excited to see her friends at "The Big Gathering"! Just like Molly’s friends, many people come from all over Alaska to attend this special event. Ask your child to think about the map they saw in the video and then answer the questions below.
Where do each of Molly’s friends live?
Does Molly live closer or farther away from Anchorage than her friends? How do you know?
What other information can we see on Molly’s map?
There are many different types of maps. There are maps that show a city, state, country, or even the whole world. There are maps that show what time it is in each part of the world. There are maps that show the inside of a building such as classrooms in a school or what food is on each aisle of a grocery store. And so many more.
How would each of these maps help us?
Can you think of other places where it would be helpful to have a map?
People who make maps are called cartographers. Do you want to create a map of your home or neighborhood? What places or items will you include on your map?
Join Molly, an Alaska Native girl, and friends on their adventures in beautiful Alaska.