Scale Drawings

How the lesson starts: Scale Drawings

Captain Nell's map
Ahoy there! Captain Nell the parrot found a treasure map of Coconut Island. The island is huge, but the map fits in her wing. At the bottom it says 1 cm = 5 m. What does that mean? Let's find out, matey!
Map to island: multiply
A scale is a ratio. Every 1 cm on the map stands for 5 m on the island. 1 cm is 5 m. 2 cm is 10 m. 3 cm is 15 m. So the 3 cm path to the palm tree is really 3 × 5 = 15 m. Map to real: multiply, because real things are bigger.
Scale factor: same units
Nell wants a bigger copy of her map. A scale factor of 3 means every length gets 3 times as long. The map is 4 cm wide. 4 × 3 = 12, so the copy is 12 cm wide. Same units, cm to cm, just bigger!