Locating Places on Earth – Very Short Answer Type Questions
Class 6
CBSE Class 6 Social Science — Chapter 1: Locating Places on Earth
CBSE Board Examinations: Very Short Answer Questions (1 mark), Map labelling, Practical skills, Internal assessment.
Content Bank — Chapter 1 (Topic-wise)
Topics: Understanding the Earth; Continents & Oceans; Maps & Map Types; Symbols, Scale & Orientation; Grid System (Latitude & Longitude); Cardinal Directions & Compass; Practical Map Skills.
Topic 1 — Understanding the Earth
Q1. What is a globe?
A globe is a three-dimensional model of the Earth showing continents and oceans.
Q2. What shape is the Earth approximately?
A. The Earth is approximately spherical or an oblate spheroid.
Q3. What percentage of Earth’s surface is water?
A. About 71% of Earth’s surface is covered by water.
Q4. Name the solid part of Earth where organisms live.
A. The lithosphere is the solid outer layer where organisms live.
Q5. Why is a globe more accurate than a flat map?
A. A globe shows true shapes and relative positions without distortion of area or direction.
Topic 2 — Continents and Oceans
Q6. How many continents are there?
A. There are seven continents.
Q7. Name the seven continents.
A. Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia.
Q8. How many major oceans are there?
A. There are five major oceans.
Q9. Name the five oceans.
A. Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, Southern (Antarctic), and Arctic Oceans.
Q10. Which is the largest ocean?
A. The Pacific Ocean is the largest.
Topic 3 — Maps and Types of Maps
Q11. What is a map?
A. A map is a two-dimensional representation of the Earth’s surface showing selected features.
Q12. Give one advantage of a map over a globe.
A. Maps are easy to carry and useful for detailed local study.
Q13. What is a physical map?
A. A physical map shows natural features like mountains, rivers, and plains.
Q14. What is a political map?
A. A political map shows boundaries of countries, states, and cities.
Q15. What is a thematic map?
A. A thematic map focuses on a particular theme such as rainfall, population, or vegetation.
Topic 4 — Map Symbols, Scale and Orientation
Q16. What is a map symbol?
A. A map symbol is a small sign or picture used to represent real features on a map.
Q17. What does a map’s legend show?
A. The legend explains the meaning of symbols used on the map.
Q18. What is a map scale?
A. A map scale shows the relationship between distances on the map and actual distances on the ground.
Q19. If scale is 1 cm = 100 km, how far is 3 cm on map?
A. 3 cm on the map equals 300 km in reality.
Q20. What does orientation on a map mean?
A. Orientation shows the direction on the map, usually with a north arrow.
Topic 5 — Latitude (Parallels)
Q21. What are latitudes?
A. Latitudes are imaginary horizontal lines that run east–west around the Earth.
Q22. Which latitude is 0°?
A. The Equator is 0° latitude.
Q23. Name two important latitudes other than the Equator.
A. Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn (also Arctic and Antarctic circles).
Q24. How are latitudes measured?
A. Latitudes are measured in degrees north or south of the Equator.
Q25. Do latitudes meet at the poles?
A. No, latitudes are parallel and do not meet; they are smallest near the poles.
Topic 6 — Longitude (Meridians)
Q26. What are longitudes?
A. Longitudes are imaginary vertical lines called meridians running from pole to pole.
Q27. Which longitude is 0°?
A. The Prime Meridian at Greenwich is 0° longitude.
Q28. How are longitudes measured?
A. Longitudes are measured in degrees east or west of the Prime Meridian.
Q29. Do longitudes meet at the poles?
A. Yes, meridians meet at the North and South Poles.
Q30. Which is used first when writing coordinates?
A. Latitude is written first, then longitude (e.g., 28°N, 77°E).
Topic 7 — Cardinal Directions and Compass
Q31. What are the four cardinal directions?
A. North, South, East and West are the four cardinal directions.
Q32. Which way does a compass needle point?
A. A compass needle points towards the magnetic north.
Q33. If you face north, which side is east?
A. East is to your right when you face north.
Q34. Name one use of a compass.
A. A compass helps in finding directions and orienting maps in the field.
Q35. What are inter-cardinal directions?
A. Inter-cardinal directions are NE, NW, SE, and SW (between cardinal points).
Topic 8 — Practical Map Skills
Q36. How do you measure distance on a map?
A. Use the map scale to convert map distance into real distance.
Q37. What is the meaning of 1 : 50,000 on a map?
A. 1 cm on the map represents 50,000 cm (or 500 m) on the ground.
Q38. How do you locate a place using coordinates?
A. Identify its latitude (N/S) and longitude (E/W) and find their intersection on the map.
Q39. What is map labelling?
A. Map labelling is writing names of countries, rivers, mountains or parallels correctly on the map.
Q40. Give one tip for neat map labelling in exams.
A. Use a fine pencil, write clearly near the feature, and draw neat boundaries and symbols.
Topic 9 — Quick Facts and Revision
Q41. Which continent has the largest area?
A. Asia has the largest area among continents.
Q42. Which continent has the smallest land area?
A. Australia is the smallest continent by land area (excluding islands grouping).
Q43. Name the line that divides Earth into Northern and Southern Hemispheres.
A. The Equator divides Earth into Northern and Southern Hemispheres.
Q44. What is the Prime Meridian used to measure?
A. The Prime Meridian is used to measure longitude (east and west).
Q45. Name one example of a thematic map.
A. A rainfall map showing distribution of rainfall is a thematic map.
Topic 10 — Simple Practice Questions
Q46. What is meant by 'hemisphere'?
A. A hemisphere is half of the Earth, e.g., Northern Hemisphere.
Q47. Which ocean lies to the east of Africa?
A. The Indian Ocean lies to the east of Africa.
Q48. What is an atlas?
A. An atlas is a book of maps showing countries, regions and thematic information.
Q49. Where is the Tropic of Cancer located relative to Equator?
A. The Tropic of Cancer is north of the Equator.
Q50. Why should students practise maps regularly?
A. Regular practice improves speed, accuracy and confidence in map skills for exams.
Note: These Very Short Answer Questions with Answers are prepared strictly as per the NCERT syllabus and are ideal for CBSE Class 6 board exam preparation and quick revision.