Patterns on the Map is a free printable Grade 4 science worksheet on analyzing maps to describe patterns in Earth's features, aligned to NGSS performance expectation 4-ESS2-2. It prints 2 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions that each ask different questions, so no two students in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.
Set 1 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.
Draw a line from each pattern to what explains it.
1.Draw a line from each one to its match.
Deep trenches just offshore
Rivers running from high ground to the sea
Volcanoes ringing the Pacific Ocean
Mountain chains running for thousands of miles
A.One plate is sliding beneath another
B.They form where plates push together
C.Water flows downhill to the lowest point
D.They line up along the edges of Earth's plates
2.Draw a line from each one to its match.
Islands in a long chain across an ocean
Deserts in belts either side of the equator
Earthquakes in long narrow bands
Coasts with wide flat estuaries
A.The plate moved over a fixed hot spot
B.Dry sinking air sits over those latitudes
C.They follow the same plate boundaries
D.A river drops its sediment where it meets the sea
LessonPrint · 4-ESS2-2 · Set 1 · free to copy for classroom use
Answer key — Patterns on the Map
Set 1. Prints on its own sheet.
1.1. Deep trenches just offshore — A (One plate is sliding beneath another) 2. Rivers running from high ground to the sea — C (Water flows downhill to the lowest point) 3. Volcanoes ringing the Pacific Ocean — D (They line up along the edges of Earth's plates) 4. Mountain chains running for thousands of miles — B (They form where plates push together)
2.1. Islands in a long chain across an ocean — A (The plate moved over a fixed hot spot) 2. Deserts in belts either side of the equator — B (Dry sinking air sits over those latitudes) 3. Earthquakes in long narrow bands — C (They follow the same plate boundaries) 4. Coasts with wide flat estuaries — D (A river drops its sediment where it meets the sea)
Questions about Patterns on the Map
What does the Patterns on the Map worksheet cover?
It practices analyzing maps to describe patterns in Earth's features — 2 questions for Grade 4, all on NGSS 4-ESS2-2: Read maps to find patterns in Earth's features. The instruction to students is “Draw a line from each pattern to what explains it”, and the answer key follows on the next sheet.
Which NGSS performance expectation does Patterns on the Map practice?
4-ESS2-2, under Earth and Space Science for Grade 4. The published performance expectation reads: “Analyze and interpret data from maps to describe patterns of Earth’s features.” The worksheet assesses that performance expectation rather than a paraphrase of it.
What age or grade is this worksheet for?
Patterns on the Map is written for Grade 4, typically ages 9-10. It is one of the sheets on 4-ESS2-2, so it suits any student working at that standard — including older students revisiting it and younger ones working ahead.
Does Patterns on the Map come with an answer key?
Yes. All 2 answers are generated from the same problems as the questions, so the key cannot drift out of step with the sheet. It starts on a fresh sheet of paper, after the questions, so it is not handed out with the class by accident.
How many different versions of Patterns on the Map can I print?
25 — one per student, and all 25 ask different questions. Set 1 downloads the whole class as a single PDF. Every version is fixed to its own address, so a sheet printed today holds the same problems when you reopen it next week.
Is Patterns on the Map free to print and photocopy?
Yes. Patterns on the Map, its answer key and its 25 versions are free to print and photocopy for your own class, with no account, no email capture and no subscription at the download step. Please do not resell them or republish them as your own.
Is there a lesson plan to teach 4-ESS2-2?
Yes — “Patterns on the Map” is a 55-minute Grade 4 plan for 4-ESS2-2, timed section by section, with the misconceptions to expect and an exit ticket. Patterns on the Map is the practice that follows it.
More practice for 4-ESS2-2
Read maps to find patterns in Earth's features.
Teaching this next? Patterns on the Map is the 55-minute plan for it, with the misconceptions to expect.