These days most people have a smartphone and on it they have GPS or Google maps which they can use to find their way around. But it is a very useful skill to be able to read a map. What if you get lost without your phone? What if your phone runs out of battery? That’s when you’ll wish you knew how to read a map. Actually, it's not all that difficult. Here’s a quick lesson in map reading. Start off with a small map. Then look at how it shows the roads, shops and landmarks. Most maps have a legend. This is a list with explanations. It tells us important places on a map or what its different symbols mean. For example, on a map of a specific place like a park or a zoo, there may be numbers and the legend or key will tell us what these numbers mean, such as the café or the gift shop. On a map of a bigger place like a nature reserve or a general map of the countryside, the legend tells us what different symbols on it mean. For example, a cross would mean a church and a blue line would be a river. So, to teach yourself how to read a map you need to go outside and take your small map with you. You could go to a place in the countryside or you could go to a zoo or a nature park to try out your map reading skills. Then look at the landscape and look at your map. Choose a feature that you can see, such as a road and try to find it on your map. Then try to find where you are on the map. Next, find a place on the map and set off towards it using the map to guide you. Every time there is a feature on the map that helps you find out where you are such as a library or a train station, use it to help you judge how far away you are. When you get to the place you chose to go to, then you can give yourself a pat on the back. Keep practising until you can reach where you want to go every time without getting lost and then slowly use a bigger map or go to a bigger place. Eventually, you will be a skilled map reader.