How to Draw the Earth on a Ball
Interactive education is engaging, not only for students, but also for teachers. Getting kids interested in geography by having them draw on something that they consider a toy, is a creative way to learn. To draw the earth on a ball is educational, not only to teach students the placement of continents, but to show their sizes and shapes and the vast expanse of the oceans. Have students spin their completed earth balls on their fingers, simulating the axis, or play catch as a reward for a job well done.
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Instructions
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Hold the ball so that the inflator nozzle is facing directly down. This will be the South Pole.
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Make a dot exactly opposite it at the top of the ball. This is the North Pole.
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Set the ball down on a flat surface and hold a ruler vertically beside it. Note how tall the ball is. Divide this number by 2. Mark the side of the ball at that number of inches tall to indicate the widest part of the sphere. For example, if the ball is 12 inches tall, then 12 divided by 2 is 6. Mark the ball at six inches above the flat surface it is sitting on.
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Mark this height in several places, while turning the ball on its South Pole. Connect the dots. This is the equator.
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Mark a line from the North Pole to the South Pole. This is the Prime Meridian.
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Continue drawing from the South Pole to the North Pole on the opposite side of the Prime Meridian. This is the International Date Line. The circle you've drawn will make a complete revolution around the ball.
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Draw another circle vertically halfway between the Prime Meridian/International Date Line circle. Call the new circle a Longitude circle. Face the ball so that you are looking at one of the sides of the Longitude circle, and the other side is away from you. You should see your globe sliced into four sections.
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Draw a small circle whose sides touch the second circle in the upper left section, above the intersection of the equator and the second circle. Detail the circle into the shape of North America and Central America.
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Draw another circle in the lower right quadrant, encompassing a bit of the equator. Detail it into the shape of the top of South America. Add the lower triangular shape to South America.
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Turn the ball so that the International Date Line is on the right and the other side of the Longitude circle is in front of you. Draw an oval figure that reaches a bit across the Longitude circle beneath the equator in the lower right quadrant and shape it into Australia.
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Draw Asia in the upper half, using up most of the space.
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Turn the ball one more time, so that the Prime Meridian is in front of you. Draw a horizontal oval above the equator, to the right of the Prime Meridian, but large enough to cut through it into the upper left quadrant. Draw a vertical oval attached to it that drops below the equator. Shape this into Africa.
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Draw Europe above Africa in the upper right quadrant.
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Fill in the large islands of the world and Antarctica.
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Tips & Warnings
Color oceans to make the globe more realistic.
Details such as latitude and longitude lines, countries and cities can be added.
References
- Photo Credit globe image by hugy from Fotolia.com
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Comments
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