Concept 4 of 4
Map Directions: Two Hops Across a Map
Today's big idea
Take the hops one at a time from the named place, north or south word first.
East to the market then north to the library makes north-east.
How it works
👀 What's going on?
A map question hands you places joined one link at a time and asks about two places that were never linked directly. You have to travel through the middle one, and keep track of which end you are measuring from.
💡 Here's the trick
Look at the map above. The library sits above the market, so it is north of it. The market sits right of the school, so it is east of it. Standing at the school, the library is therefore both north and east, which makes it north-east. Reverse the whole thing and the school is south-west of the library, every word swapped for its opposite.
🪄 How to do it
- 1.Mark the place the question measures from, as the map above measures from the school.
- 2.Take the hops one at a time, writing each as north or south, or east or west.
- 3.Join the two words with north or south first, and to reverse it swap every word.
✍️ Try it
The bank is south of the park, and the park is west of the post office. Where is the bank from the post office? And where is the post office from the bank?
From the post office the park lies west, and the bank lies south of the park, so the bank is south-west of the post office. Swapping both words, the post office is north-east of the bank.
⚠️ Watch out
You might be thinking a diagonal reverses by flipping only one of its words. Both words flip. The opposite of north-east is south-west, never north-west, and that slip turns a right answer into a plausible wrong one.
🌟 Why this matters
Directions given as a chain of landmarks are how people actually describe a route. Turning that chain into one direction tells you whether to set off left or right. It is the same move on any street map.
Exam tip: Sketch the two hops before answering, because the picture settles it instantly.
Watch me solve one
Quanta solves it
“Watch how I think through one of these — then you try.”
THE PROBLEM
“The library is north of the café. The café is west of the bank. Where is the library from the bank?”
- 1
Fix the starting place
The question measures from the bank, so every hop is read from there. 🗺️
- 2
First hop
The café is west of the bank, so step west.
- 3
Second hop
The library is north of the café, so step north. Two words, north or south first.
- 4
Answer ✓
north-west
Now you try one — same steps, different story 👇
See it in action
⚡ Time to play!
One hop at a time, always from the place the question names.
MAP CHAINER · ROUND 1 OF 3
Step 1 · the first hop, seen from the school
Quick check
✅ VERIFICATION
The clinic is north of the market and the market is west of the bus stand. Where is the clinic from the bus stand?
⚡ Finish the activity above first to answer.
Keep going!