Note: there will be 3 sections to this summer’s exam:
1 Map Skills:
2 Glaciation:
3 Ecosystems:
Use of an atlas; OS Map Skills: Map symbols; 6 figure grid
references; Measuring distances using scale; features
Glacial landforms; How these are formed; Conflicts in national
parks
Studied between Easter and the exam
1. Map Skills:
a) Use of an Atlas: Longitude and Latitude
You need to feel confident using an atlas e.g. locating the names of cities or
rivers on a map or finding the longitude/latitude for places.
Helsinki, Finland
Prime Meridian
Equator
Prime Meridian
Longitude - lines run vertically and measure east or west from the Prime
Meridian, in Greenwich, England. Greenwich is at 0°.
Latitude – lines run horizontally and measure north or south from the
equator (0°) to the North Pole at 90°N and South Pole = 90°S.
Questions 1 – Looking at the map above. What are the coordinates
(longitude and latitude) for Helsinki, Finland?
Questions 2 – Looking at the map above. Which is further south, the
southern tip of South Africa or the southern tip of Australia?
1
b) OS Maps: symbols; points on a compass; 6-fig grid references; measuring
distances – straight line and along a winding route; geographical features
You need to feel comfortable using an OS Map. For example, knowing the basic
map symbols (or where to look at the ‘key’ to find out) and then locating these
symbols on OS Maps using 4 and 6 figure grid references. It is vital that you can
give directions from one point to another using either points on a compass or
distance instructions along a straight/winding route.
Symbols:
A few basic symbols but refer to your exercise book for the hand out I gave
you and see if you can learn them…
Bus station Train station Main Road Deciduous forest Coniferous forest Marsh
+
Viewpoint
Camp site
Place of
worship
PO
Place of worship Place of worship Post
w/ spire
w/ tower
Office
Points on a compass:
Think of a way to remember compass points. Never Eat Shredded Wheat?
2
4 and 6-fig grid references:
Along the corridor and up the stairs…4 figure grid references are a helpful
way of taking you to any square on a map. 6 figure take you to a precise
point within a square. Remember to divide the square into 10 equal parts
to find the final number…
Tip! Try practising your OS Map skills using the following website:
http://mapzone.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/mapzone/PagesHomeworkHelp/index.htm
Measuring distances – straight line and along a winding route:
The scale of a map shows how much you would have to enlarge your map
to get the actual size of the piece of land you are looking at. For example,
your map has a scale of 1:25 000, which means that every 1 cm on the
map represents 25 000 of those same units of measurement on the ground
(for example, 25 000 cm = 250 metres). That might sound a bit confusing,
but OS maps have been designed to make understanding scale easy. A
1:25 000 scale map will often write the scale as:
4 cm to 1 km
This means that every 4 cm on a map = 1 km in real life. To make it even
easier, the grid lines are exactly 4 cm apart, so every square is 1 km by 1
km. Maps are made at different scales for different purposes. A 1:25 000
scale map is useful for walking, but if you use it in a car you will quickly
drive off the edge! A 1:250 000 scale shows more land but less detail.
3
Straight line distances can be measured using a ruler to measure between
Point A and Point B. You then use your scale to convert from cm to km.
Winding routes are more fun but a bit trickier. Follow the steps below:
i.
Take a sheet of paper and place the corner of the straight edge on
your starting point (mark this Point A)
ii.
Now pivot the paper until the edge follows your chosen route.
iii. Every time the route disappears or moves away from the straight
iv.
v.
edge of your paper, make a small pencil
mark on the edge (notch) and pivot the
paper do the edge is back on course.
Continue in this manner until the
measurement is completed.
With a ruler measure your distance from
Point A to end of your route and convert from cm to km.
Question 3: Have a try with the route below (Scale - 4cm : 1km)
Geographical features
You need to know how to read the shape of the land using contours and
also identify settlements (towns/villages on the map). On 1:25 000 scale
maps height is shown using brown contours which join points of equal
height above sea level. They are usually at intervals of 5 metres but can be
10 metres in mountainous regions.
Remember: a) contour numbering reads up hill – in other words the top of the
number is uphill and the bottom is downhill b) the closer contour lines are
together, the steeper the slope.
4
Questions 4 – What are the 4 figure
grid references for A, B and C?
Questions 5 – What are the 6 figure
grid references for A, B and C?
Answers: Q1 - 60˚N (Latitude) and 25˚E (Longitude) Q2 – Australia Q3 – 2km (as 8cm) Q4 – A= 8326; B = 8424;
C = 8523 Q5 - A= 616336; B = 636325; C = 633342
2. Glaciation:
a. Label features on a glaciated landscape
Know what the main features are and how to identify them
5
b. Types of weathering and erosion
There are 3 main processes at work in glaciated landscapes:
Weathering:
Erosion:
Deposition:
What is it?
What is it?
What is it?
material broken down broken material ALSO carried material
being
on site – e.g. Freeze- away by a moving force – e.g. carried is dropped
thaw
plucking and abrasion
e.g. moraine
e.g. Freeze-thaw:
e.g. Plucking
-Water runs into small
cracks during the day.
-At night the water
freezes and expands
outward enlarging the
crack. The next day the
ice melts and contracts
more water runs into
the crack.
-Freeze-thaw process is
repeated enlarging the
crack each time.
-Eventually parts of the
rock can break off in
jagged pieces
-As glacier moves down a valley,
it puts pressure on the valley base
creating friction and heat which
causes ice nearby to melt.
-Water runs into rock cracks/
joints and freezes due to the cold.
-When the glacier moves it then
pulls some of the rock face with it
e.g. moraine
Debris transported
and deposited by
glaciers. Formed
by erosion of side
and base of valley
(e.g. plucking) or
weathering
from
above (e.g. freezethaw)
-Types?
Lateral,
Medial & Terminal
e.g. Abrasion
-Rock frozen to the base and the
back of the glacier scrapes and
e.g. drumlin
scours the bed rock.
In lowland areas,
drumlins
form
when sediment is
deposited by the
glacier when it
becomes too heavy
often when melting
Stoss
end
Lee end
e.g. erratic
Large boulders
carried long
distances by
glaciers before
being deposited
6
a. Corrie formation and description:
Formation?
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
v.
Snow collects in a natural hollow on the side of a mountain.
Over time, further snow collects in the hollow. This extra weight
compresses the snow beneath turning it into ice.
The hollow is deepened and widened by the corrie glacier through
the processes of abrasion and plucking
This deepening leads to an ‘armchair’ shape characteristic of a corrie
and causes a ‘rock lip’ to be formed.
When the ice melts, a lake is left in the corrie. This is called a tarn.
Description? Steep back wall
Moraine deposited on front lip
Armchair shaped hollow
b. Formation of arêtes and pyramidal peaks:
Arête: Formed when 2 corries form back to back. They have steep and
rocky sides and form a sharp ridge between corries
Pyramidal Peak: When corries form on 3 or more sides. Top of mountain is
a sharp peak of jagged rock.
7
c. Formation of U-shaped valleys and ribbon lakes
U-Shaped valley formation:
BEFORE: V-Shaped valley with rivers
winding their past hard and soft rocks to
form interlocking spurs.
DURING: Glacier fills the valley and moves downhill under gravity. Its
power erodes any rock in its path. Interlocking spurs are therefore cut
back to form truncated spurs.
AFTER: U-Shaped valleys with steep
walls of bare rock and flat bottoms straighter than v-shaped valleys before.
Ribbon Lakes:
a) Glacier moves down a valley passing over bands of hard and soft rock
b) The glacier erodes the valley bed via abrasion and plucking. Softer
rocks are eroded more quickly to a greater depth forming a hollow. At
the end of the glacier moraine is deposited which blocks the valley.
c) After glacial melt the hollow fills with water – a ribbon lake.
d. Use of glaciated landscapes and possible conflicts:
You need to know how areas with glaciers or post-glaciation are used by
humans e.g. via skiing in the Alps or sailing on Lake Windermere in the
Lake District. Key people include: tourists, local residents, businesses
and environmental stewards e.g. National Park Wardens
You need to understand that different users of these spaces have
different objectives e.g. a walker may want to enjoy the beautiful
scenery in quiet whilst a jet-ski owner may want to enjoy speed and
noise on the lake. They therefore need to find compromises.
Revision Tip:
Use the glaciated landscape diagram in your books and test your
ability to find the key features. Then take them in turn and see if
you can explain how they formed with the use of geographical
terms such as erosion, weathering and deposition. Good luck!
8