Treasure Map

Buried treasure! Matthew can't wait to tell his friends in the Elm Street Kids' Club about the cool map he found. It's over 50 years old and filled with clues that lead them to the new Wonderland Park. Petey the Parrot cheers them on as they try to make sense of dated directions. The clues don't always match—a dirt path has now become a paved sidewalk and there's the mystery of what happened to the big old tree. But they finally find the "X" that marks the spot and start digging. 

It's a time capsule! The kids decide to add their own treasures to surprise the next group of friends that finds the map. Even Petey contributes a loose tail feather.

Map-reading uses several mathematical skills, including interpreting symbols and understanding scale and direction

Activities!

• Help your child make a map of his or her room. The map should include a key that contains symbols or pictures of real items in the room. You can also make maps of your home,school, backyard, playground, or the neighborhood.
• On your next trip to the mall, help your child  first locate where you are on the mall directory map. Then some favorite stores. Look at the key and discuss the meaning of various symbols. Ask your child to find the nearest restroom or restaurant using the map.
• Visit a site on the Internet that provides maps and directions. Help your child or students enter the school’s address and that of a nearby park. Print the map and have the children trace the route. Do the directions show the same route the children usually use? What things other than street names does the map show?
• Ask the children in your class where they were born and note it on a map. How many were born in the same city? State? Country? Using an Internet map service, chart trips from school to each of the locations.