How_To_Be_Good_At_Math

252 GEOMETRY •^ POSITION AND DIRECTION

Position

and direction

We can use a grid and coordinates to

describe the positions of places on a map.

10

9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Every square on the map has a unique pair

of coordinates that describe its position.

The first coordinate tells us how far along the

grid to count horizontally. The second coordinate

tells how many squares to count up vertically.

This map uses letters for the horizontal

coordinates and numbers for the vertical

coordinates. Often, maps use numbers for both

the horizontal and vertical coordinates.

How to use coordinates on a map

Maps are often divided up by a square grid, so we

can pinpoint the position of a place by giving its

square’s coordinates.

The vertical

grid is marked

with numbers

This square's

coordinates

are B2

We count along or

up from the origin

The horizontal grid is

marked with letters

1

2

3

4

A B C D

A B C D E F G H I J

252_253_Position_and_direction.indd 252 11/03/2016 16:24