Your Child Will Learn
How to make a map and visual-spatial skills
Here’s What to Do
- Draw the shape of your home’s perimeter on a piece of paper (if your home has more than one level, pick one floor to draw). Draw the front door on the map.
- Walk around your home with your child. Ask them what room you’re in, and where they think it should go on the map. Draw the shape of the room, and add a label (like: “bathroom”).
- Continue until you’ve drawn every room.
- Let your child add details to the floor plan. They can draw furniture, toys, people, pets, or anything else they think is important to add.
Put PEER Into Action
PAUSE
- Let’s practice noticing things about our home. I spy something you use to brush your teeth, can you find it?”
ENGAGE
- “We’re going to make a map of our house. Let’s start at the front door. What is the first room you see when you come in?”
- “Okay I’m going to draw the kitchen on the map. If you were looking at it from above, like a bird, the walls make this shape. And from above, the sink is here and the stove is here, so I’ll draw those too. Now I’m going to label it- Kitchen.”
ENCOURAGE
- “Hmmmm, let’s think. Does the bathroom go here? Is the bathroom right next to the kitchen? Or is there another room in between?”
- Space and directions can be difficult for children to understand. If your child is getting frustrated, help them take a calming deep breath and try again.
REFLECT
- “What was tricky about making a map? What did you like about making a map?”
Not Quite Ready
Draw a map of your home for your child, then walk around your home and show them how the map relates to the real place.
Ready for More
Have your child draw the rooms on the map without your help. Write out the room labels and see if your child can copy the words onto the map.
As Your Child Masters This Skill
They will understand how to represent places on a map.
Time to Complete
20 minutes
Materials Needed
Paper and drawing materials