Lesson Y8-U02-L06

Y8-U02-L06 Map Skills: Reading the Coast with 6-Figure Grid References Quiz: KS3 Geography, Unit 8

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

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Lesson Y8-U02-L06, Map Skills: Reading the Coast with 6-Figure Grid References: 20 multiple choice questions for the KS3 Geography (National Curriculum), Unit 8: Year 8: Coasts: A Changing Landscape, written with Revision Ninja.

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The 20 questions

  1. Which grid lines do you read along the bottom of an OS map?

    • Contour lines
    • Compass bearings
    • Northings
    • Eastings

  2. How many digits does a four-figure grid reference contain?

    • Two
    • Eight
    • Four
    • Six

  3. What precision does a six-figure grid reference give on the ground?

    • About 10 metres
    • About 100 metres
    • About 1 km
    • About 10 km

  4. What does a four-figure grid reference name?

    • A whole grid square of about 1 km
    • The height of the land above sea level
    • A single point to within one metre
    • The distance a wave travels over open sea

  5. What is a 'tenth' in a grid square?

    • A grid square that is 10 km wide
    • The scale of the map written as a fraction
    • One of ten equal strips across or up a grid square
    • A line of constant height on the map

  6. Into how many tenths is each grid square split, across and up?

    • Five
    • Ten
    • Twelve
    • Four

  7. Which set of three numbers is written first in a six-figure reference?

    • The scale number of the map
    • The easting set: the easting followed by its tenths digit
    • The northing set: the northing followed by its tenths digit
    • The tenths digits only, written first

  8. Which grid lines are read up the side of an OS map?

    • Lines showing the direction of the wind
    • Northings
    • Eastings
    • Lines showing the height of the land

  9. A stack lies just right of easting 25 and just above northing 70. What is its four-figure square?

    • 7025
    • 2507
    • 2570
    • 2700

  10. A beach is in square 18, 4 tenths across and 2 tenths up square 04. What is its six-figure reference?

    • 184042
    • 401842
    • 182404
    • 184024

  11. A feature is 3 tenths across and 8 tenths up its square. Which digits are added to the easting and northing?

    • 8 and 3
    • 8 and 8
    • 3 and 3
    • 3 and 8

  12. Marker A is in square 2570, 7 tenths across and 5 tenths up. What is its six-figure reference?

    • 257750
    • 257705
    • 250770
    • 705257

  13. A pupil writes 705257 instead of 257705. What did they do wrong?

    • They read the contour lines instead of the grid
    • They forgot to read the scale of the map
    • They used the wrong number of tenths in each square
    • They wrote the northing set first, swapping the order

  14. A coastguard must find a walker quickly. Which reference should be given?

    • A compass bearing with no grid numbers, giving the direction but not the place
    • The name of the nearest headland only, with no grid reference or square given
    • A six-figure reference, pinpointing the spot to about 100 metres
    • A four-figure square covering about 1 km, so the search area is quite wide

  15. Marker C is at 316138 and marker A is at 257705. Where is C compared with A?

    • North-west of A
    • South-east of A
    • Directly north of A
    • Directly west of A

  16. Which description fits a four-figure grid reference in the card sort?

    • Names a 1 km square only and has four digits
    • Marks the height of a cliff above the tide line
    • Pinpoints a feature to about 100 metres with six digits
    • Uses tenths to locate an exact spot within the square

  17. Why is a six-figure reference still not exact enough to find a single rock pool?

    • Rock pools move with the tide, so no reference can ever be fixed in place
    • Six figures are only used for beaches, so pools must be found some other way
    • It pinpoints a spot only to about 100 metres, so very small features need more precision
    • It names a whole square of about 10 km, so it is too broad for any local search

  18. Compare a grid reference with an aerial photograph for describing a spit. Which gives more detail about the spit?

    • Neither helps, because spits cannot be seen from the air
    • An aerial photograph, because it shows the real shape and colour of the spit
    • A grid reference, because it shows the spit's shape and colour
    • Both give the same detail because they are equally precise

  19. Why does splitting a grid square into tenths improve precision?

    • It enlarges the map so that features look bigger and easier to read on the page
    • It divides the square into smaller strips, so the spot can be located more closely
    • It shows the height of the land in each tenth, so the contours can be read directly
    • It changes the map scale to one to ten, so every distance on the map is shortened

  20. Explain why the order of digits matters in a six-figure reference.

    • The order tells the reader which way the map faces, so the north is always at the top
    • Order does not matter, because the map is symmetrical so every reading is the same
    • The order matters only for four-figure references, not for six-figure ones at all
    • Swapping the sets sends the reader to a different square, and so a different place

All KS3 Geography quizzes