LESSON 6: SCALE DRAWINGS AND
MODELS
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The floor plan below is an example of a scale
drawing. A scale drawing is a diagram of an
object in which the dimensions are in
proportion to the actual dimensions of the
object.
The scale on a scale
drawing tells how
the drawing’s
dimensions and the
actual dimensions
are related. The scale
“1 in. : 12 ft” means
that 1 inch in the
floor plan represents
an actual distance of
12 feet.
EXAMPLE 1 USING THE SCALE OF A MAP


Maps Use the map of
Maine to estimate the
distance between the
towns of China and New
Sweden.
Solution From the map’s
scale, 1 centimeter
represents 65 kilometers.
On the map, the distance
between China and New
Sweden is 4.5 centimeters.
Find the distance in
kilometers.
EXAMPLE 2 FINDING A DIMENSION ON A
SCALE MODEL


White House A scale model of the White
House appears in Tobu World Square in
Japan. The scale used is 1 : 25. The height of
the main building of the White House is 85
feet. Find this height on the model.
Write and solve a proportion to find the height h
of the main building of the model of the White
House.
EXAMPLE 3 FINDING THE SCALE


Dinosaurs A museum is creating
a full-size Tyrannosaurus rex
from a model. The model is 40
inches in length, from the nose to
the tail. The resulting dinosaur
will be 40 feet in length. What is
the model’s scale?
Write a ratio. Make sure that both
measures are in inches. Then simplify
the fraction.
ANSWER The model’s scale is 1 : 12.
YOUR TURN
1.
The model of the Eiffel Tower in Tobu World Square
is 12 meters high. The scale used is 1 : 25.
Estimate the actual height of the Eiffel Tower.
2.
On a map of Colorado, the distance from Rico to
Lizard Head Pass on Route 145 is about 9.5 cm.
From the map scale, 1 cm represents 2 km.
Estimate the actual distance between the
towns.
3.
The caboose on a model train is 6.75 inches long.
The full-size caboose is 36 feet. What is the
model’s scale?