Grade 1 Social Studies: Places, Directions, and Simple Maps
Free Grade 1 Social Studies unit on Places, Directions, and Simple Maps: 10 lessons in order. Includes practice questions and answer keys.
10 lessons in this unit
Places around us
Name and describe places around home and school (house, school, market, playground, clinic, river, hill), say what people do in each place, and begin to describe where a place is using simple words.
Lesson 2Near and far
Understand near and far as ways of comparing distance, compare places that are near and far from home or school, and recognise that near and far depend on how we travel and the starting point.
Lesson 3Left and right
Use left and right to describe positions of objects and body parts, follow simple left and right instructions, and recognise that left and right change when we face another way.
Lesson 4Basic directions
Learn the four main directions (north, south, east, west), how the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, how to use a compass in simple form, and how to find directions at school.
Lesson 5Natural features
Identify natural features of land and water (hills, mountains, rivers, lakes, sea, beaches, forests, plains, rocks), describe them using simple words, and recognise some natural features of Sierra Leone and elsewhere.
Lesson 6Human-made features
Identify human-made features (buildings, roads, bridges, wells, farms, markets, towers), explain why people build them, and compare them with natural features.
Lesson 7Pictures and simple maps
Understand that a map is a drawing of a place seen from above, compare a picture (side view) with a map (top view), and recognise places on a simple picture map of a school or community.
Lesson 8Map symbols
Understand that maps use symbols, colours and keys to show things, read a simple key, use common symbols (blue for water, green for land or trees, square for building, line for road), and create own symbols.
Lesson 9Drawing a classroom map
Use top views and symbols to draw a simple map of the classroom, include a title, key and compass direction, place desks, door and windows in relative positions, and check the map with a partner.
Lesson 10Finding places using maps
Use a simple map to find places and follow a route, use words such as left, right, straight, near and far with directions and symbols, and plan and describe a short route between two places.