> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.chimeedu.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Create Interactive Map Activities for Any Geography

> Build interactive map activities with pins, rich descriptions, and images. Perfect for history, geography, science, and literature.

Map activities anchor knowledge to real places. You set a base map, choose the default view and zoom level, place pins anywhere on the globe, and students explore the content at their own pace — opening pin cards to read descriptions, view images, and build the spatial understanding that a textbook passage simply cannot provide.

## What You Can Do with Maps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Interactive Pins" icon="map-pin">
    Place any number of pins anywhere on the map. Each one opens a card with rich content — students click to explore, not just read.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Rich Pin Cards" icon="image">
    Each pin card supports formatted text, embedded images, and detailed descriptions. Give every location as much context as it deserves.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Pan and Zoom" icon="magnifying-glass">
    Students pan and zoom freely across the map, shifting perspective from street-level detail to a continental overview.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Any Geography" icon="globe">
    Set the default view to any location on Earth — a single city, a country, a continent, or the whole globe. There are no geographic constraints.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Works Across Subjects" icon="book-open">
    History, geography, science, literature, current events — any subject with a sense of place benefits from the map format.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Published to Your Classroom" icon="chalkboard-user">
    Maps go straight to your classroom feed. Students access them from their dashboard — no separate link, no external platform.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Creating a Map Activity

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open New Activity">
    From your teacher dashboard, click **New Activity** and select **Map**.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Set the default view">
    Search for a location or drag the map to the area your activity covers. Set the default zoom level so students open the activity with the right geographic context already in view.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add pins">
    Click anywhere on the map to drop a pin. Reposition it by dragging, or delete it and start again — pins are fully editable at any time.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Fill in each pin card">
    For every pin, add a **title**, a **description** (formatted text is supported), and one or more **images**. The more context you provide, the richer the student experience.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Publish to your classroom">
    When you are happy with the map, click **Publish** and choose the classroom you want to assign it to. It will appear on your students' dashboards immediately.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Tip>
  Use the list-view alternative in the activity settings to offer a keyboard- and accessibility-friendly version of the same content. Students who find map navigation difficult can read all pin cards in a structured list without missing any information.
</Tip>

## What Students Experience

When a student opens a Map Activity, they land on the default view you configured. From there they can:

* **Pan and zoom** freely to any part of the map.
* **Click any pin** to open the full pin card with your title, description, and images.
* **Navigate between pins** using the list-view mode for a more linear, accessible experience.

Students move at their own pace. There is no timer and no set order — the activity is designed for independent exploration.

<Note>
  All map pins are fully keyboard-navigable. Students can tab between pins and open cards without using a mouse or touchscreen, making Map Activities accessible to students who rely on keyboard navigation.
</Note>

## Subject Ideas

Not sure where to start? Here are some tried-and-tested uses across the curriculum:

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="History" icon="landmark">
    Trace military campaigns, map the expansion of empires, mark the sites of key battles, or chart migration routes across centuries.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Geography" icon="mountain">
    Identify physical features such as mountain ranges, river systems, and tectonic boundaries, or explore human geography topics like population density and urban growth.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Science" icon="flask">
    Plot ecosystems and biomes, map fieldwork data collection sites, track the spread of a species, or visualise climate zones across the globe.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Literature" icon="book">
    Pin the settings of a novel, chart a character's journey, or map the real-world locations that inspired an author's writing.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Modern Studies" icon="newspaper">
    Track the spread of a policy across different countries, map international organisations and their member states, or visualise global data from current events.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Any subject with place" icon="location-dot">
    If your content happens somewhere in the world — at any scale — a Map Activity gives it a location students can explore and remember.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>


## Related topics

- [How to Explore Interactive Map Activities on ChimeEdu](/students/exploring-maps.md)
- [ChimeEdu for Teachers: Your Interactive Classroom Hub](/teachers/introduction.md)
- [Getting Started on ChimeEdu: Complete Student Guide](/students/introduction.md)
- [Build Interactive Timeline Activities for Your Class](/teachers/activities/timelines.md)
- [Accessibility Features in ChimeEdu — What's Supported](/help/accessibility.md)