Worked examples
Two examples
Example 1
A practice map, drawn for this examplePractice map, made up for this example. The places are not real.
From Alder, in which direction is Dune?A. northeastB. southeast
C. east
D. southwest
- Before any question, read the four things. The title says this is a practice map of Willow Creek. The legend says what the marks mean. The compass shows which way is north. The scale bar shows distance; this question does not need it.
- Now the compass. The arrow marked N does not point to the top of the page. It points to the right side. So on this map, right is north.
- Turn the other directions with it. East is a quarter turn clockwise from north: if north is to the right, east is toward the bottom of the page. South is to the left, and west is toward the top.
- Find Alder, then Dune. On the page, Dune is to the right of Alder and lower down. Right is north on this map, and lower is east. So Dune is north and east of Alder at once: northeast. That is A.
- B, southeast, is what you get if you read the page as though north were at the top: lower would be south, and right would be east. The compass says otherwise.
- C, east, is half the answer: Dune is east of Alder, but it is also north of it. D, southwest, is backward: it is the way from Dune to Alder.
Answer: A
Example 2
A practice map, drawn for this examplePractice map, made up for this example. The places are not real.
According to the map, what is at Gull Rock?A. a schoolB. a hospital
C. a train station
D. The map does not say.
- A legend is a promise: every mark on the map means what the legend says it means. So for a question about a mark, go from the mark to the legend.
- Find Gull Rock on the map. Its mark is a small diamond.
- Now read down the legend: a small square is a town with a school, a cross is a town with a hospital, a ring is a town with a train station, and the line is a road. There is no diamond.
- A mark that is not in the legend is outside the promise. The map does not tell you what the diamond means, so the honest answer is D.
- A, B, and C are guesses. Each one names a real line of the legend, and each is easy to pick, because the diamond sits on a road between two towns. But the legend gives a different mark for each of them, and the diamond is none of those marks.
- On the test, when a mark is not in the legend, read it with care and do not guess.
Answer: D
Where this is taught: Skills Quiz 3, Reading maps: First, the idea · Skills Quiz 3: the worked example · Skills Diagnostic, Part 3
In your Kaplan book: Unit 3, Chapter 1, Lesson 6: Interpret Data and Statistics · Map of the Terrain, topic 3: Reading maps
The drill
Ten questions
How many:
Read what is in the box first. Then tap your answer; a few questions ask you to choose words from a drop-down instead, the way the GED test does. Press Check my answers at the bottom.Read what is in the box first. Circle your answer; where there are brackets, circle the choice that fits. The answer key, with the reasoning, is on the last page.