CBSE Class 6 Science – Exploring Society:
India and Beyond – Takshila-DPS Pune- Patna-Coimbatore

AUTHOR

Dr. Gauri Kshirsagar

MBBS, DNB (DVL)

Dermatologist, Cosmetologist and Laser Surgeon

Nuleaf Skin Clinic and Hair Transplant Center, Undri, Pune

www.nuleafhair.com

As a mother of twin daughters and a Consultant Dermatologist based in Undri, Pune, life is always a balancing act. Between busy clinic hours, parenting duties, and everyday chaos, I’ve been creating study notes since Class 4 to help my girls understand and revise their lessons better. Over the years, these weekend study sessions turned into a special tradition—discussing topics taught in school and turning them into organized, easy-to-revise notes.

The notes I’m sharing here are from the 2024–25 academic year of DPS Pune – Patna – Coimbatore, and cover Class 6 chapters. They include all the key points that are likely to be asked in exams, compiled from the Class 6 Exploring Society:India and Beyond , school study materials, class notes and school revision sheets.

Each page was made with care, love, and a hope to make learning feel a little easier—especially during exam time. If they help your child too, then this effort finds even more meaning.

If you find these notes useful, I’d love to hear from you in the comments section. And if you’d like me to upload notes on any particular topic from Class 6, feel free to send in your suggestions.
Don’t forget to subscribe to my blog for new updates, notes, and posts.

Wishing you and your child a wonderful academic year ahead!

Warmly,
Gauri
Mom to twins | raisingtwinsblog.in

IMPORTANT POINTS

• Mapping the Earth is a little more difficult because our planet is not a flat surface. 
• It nearly has the shape of a sphere. (We say ‘nearly’ because it is not a perfect sphere, but is slightly flattened at the poles. However, in practice, we will consider it to be spherical.) 

NOTES

Q.1) What is a map and how do we use it?
Ans)

Map: Map is a representation or drawing of an area of the Earth on a flat surface whether small or large – say of a district or village or very large area like India or even the world at a specific scale. One map contains many facts.

Atlas: Collection of maps is called an Atlas.

Q.2) What are the types of map and its main components?

Ans) Maps can be used to represent details of areas and features of the Earth.
Types of maps are:

1. Physical Maps: Physical maps show physical/ natural features of the Earth such as mountains, oceans, rivers, plains and plateaus
2. Political Maps: Political maps show political division of the Earth like countries, states, boundaries, capital, cities, villages etc.
3. Thematic Maps: Thematic Maps show specific information like rainfall, forests, minerals, roads, industries, population density etc.

The main components of maps are:

1. Distance
2. Direction 
3. Symbols.

Q.3) What is a scale of a map (distance)?

Ans) 

1. Maps are drawings, which reduce the entire world or a part of it to fit on a sheet of paper.
2. This reduction is done very carefully so that the distance between the places is real.
3. Scale (Defⁿ): A map’s scale is the ratio between the distance on a map and the corresponding distance in real life. 

Q.4) What are Cardinal directions or cardinal points?

Ans) 

1. The top right of a map shows the direction. There are four major directions – North, South, East, and West called the Cardinal directions, also cardinal points.
2. Other than these, intermediate directions are also used — northeast (NE), southeast (SE), southwest (SW) and northwest (NW).

Q.5) What are symbols?

Ans) 

1. It is not possible to draw on a map the actual shape and size of different features such as buildings, roads, bridges, trees, railway lines or a well. 
2. They are shown by using certain letters, shades, colours, pictures and lines. 
3. These symbols give a lot of information in a limited space. 
4. Even if you don’t know the language of an area and therefore cannot ask someone for directions, you can collect information from maps with the help of these symbols. 
5. Maps have a universal language that can be understood by all. 
6. There is an international agreement regarding the use of these symbols.
7. The Survey of India, a government body, has fixed a set of symbols for maps of India.

Q.6) What is a globe?

Ans) Globe is a true model (miniature form) of the Earth on which a map is drawn. It is always mounted on an axis. It is of spherical shape.

Q.7) What are the coordinates? How can latitude and longitude be used to mark any location on the Earth?
Ans) 

1. Coordinates (Defⁿ): Coordinates are two numbers or sometimes a letter and a number that locate a specific point on a grid. (Example: Chess board)
2. Latitude and longitude together can describe the exact location of any place on Earth. The parallels of latitude and the meridians of longitude together constitute a grid for the globe; they are also called grid lines

Latitudes:

1. Latitudes (Defⁿ): Parallel of latitudes are imaginary lines that run east and west, parallel to the Equator. 
2. Latitudes draw a circle around the Earth. 
3. The largest circle is the Equator. 
4. The parallels of latitude grow smaller as we move northward or southward away from the equator. 
5. Latitude measures distance from the Equator. 
6. The Equator is latitude 0° (zero degree), while the latitudes of the two poles are 90°N and 90°S
7. IMPORTANT PARALLELS OF LATITUDE:

1. 1. Equator (0°)
2. 2. North Pole, South Pole (90°N, 90°S)
3. 3. Tropic of Cancer (23½ºN)
4. 4. Tropic of Capricorn (23½º S)
5. 5. Arctic Circle (66½ºN)
6. 6. Antarctic Circle (66 ½ºS)
7. All the places on the Earth do not receive the same amount of heat from the Sun.

Longitudes:

1. Longitudes (Defⁿ): Meridian of Longitude is a measure of the distance from the Prime Meridian if you travel along the Equator.  
2. The reference point is the Prime Meridian. It is also called Greenwich Meridian. 
3. It is marked as 0° longitudes. 
4. The Greenwich Meridian separates east from west. 
5. Longitude, like latitudes, is measured in degrees. 
6. New York’s longitude is 74°W, while Delhi’s is 77°E.
7. The Prime Meridian passes through England, France, Spain, Algeria, Mali, Burkina Faso, Togo, Ghana and Antarctica.
8. Indian astronomers were aware of concepts of latitude and longitude, including the need for a zero or prime meridian. 
9. The Ujjain meridian became a reference for calculations in all Indian astronomical texts. 

Q.8) Why is the earth divided into 24 time zones?

Ans)

1. It takes 4’ (4 minutes) for the Sun’s rays to reach from one degree to another degree on longitude, so it takes 60’ i.e., one hour to cross 15 degrees. 
2.  Because of this reason the earth is divided into 24 time zones. (360˚divided by 15˚=24 hrs.)

Q9). How are local time and standard time related to longitude?
Ans) 

Local Time 

1. The local time at a place is fixed based on the apparent movement of the sun.
2. When the Sun shines exactly overhead, it is 12 noon for that meridian. 
3. All places east of the Prime Meridian will be ahead of it and all places west of the Prime Meridian are behind it in time. 

Standard Time 

1. Local times are different on different meridians. 
2. To avoid confusion, it was necessary to adopt a standard time for the country. 
3. In India 82½ºE (82°30’E) at Mirzapur near Allahabad is treated as standard meridian. 
4. The local time at this meridian is taken as standard time for the whole country. It is called Indian standard time. 
5. India is 5 hours and 30 minutes ahead of GMT.
6. Example: Due to the great longitudinal extent, Russia has 11 standard times.

Calculating Time  

1. If the location is west of the Prime Meridian, subtract one hour from the current Greenwich Mean Time to determine the time in the location. 
2.  If it is east of the Prime Meridian, add one hour to the current Greenwich Mean Time to determine the time in the location.

Q.10) Write a short note on Madhya Rekha.

Ans)

1. The Greenwich Meridian is not the first prime meridian. There were others in the past. It was called madhya rekhā (or ‘middle line’) and passed through the city of Ujjayinī (today Ujjain). 
2. Varāhamihira, a famous astronomer, lived and worked there some 1,500 years ago. 
3. Indian astronomers were aware of concepts of latitude and longitude, including the need for a zero or prime meridian. 
4. The Ujjayinī meridian became a reference for calculations in all Indian astronomical texts

Q.11) What is the International Date Line?

Ans)

1. The Prime Meridian was fixed at Greenwich, the opposite line — at approximately 180° longitude — is called the International Date Line. 
2. The date changes as one travel east or west across it. 
3. Crossing the IDL traveling east results in a day being subtracted and crossing west results in a day being added. 
4. The exact number of hours depends on the time zones. 
5. On maps we find the 180° line drawn in a zigzag manner, carefully avoiding land and adjusting the islands on any one side according to their convenience.

Q.12) How does the local time change as you move east or west from the Prime Meridian? Provide an example for moving 15° East and 15° west.  

Ans) 

1. The globe rotates again from west to east that is how our planet spins around its axis, making a full turn every 24 hours. 
2. A full turn is 360°, so this means 15° per hour (15 x 24 = 360). 
3. Let us now mark the meridians of longitude every 15°. 
4. Moving eastward from the Prime Meridian, we get 0°, 15°E, 30°E, 45°E, and so on every 15° up to 180°E. 
5. It is the same as adding one hour of local time with each meridian — if it is 12 pm or noon at Greenwich, it is 1 pm local time at 15°E, 2 pm at 30°E, and so on. But going westward, it is the other way round — 11 am local time at 15°W, 10 am at 30°W, etc.

Q.13) Explain major features of meridians.
Ans) The following are the major features of meridians:

1. Meridians are equal in length.
2. The longitude running through the Greenwich pear London was first chosen as the Prime Meridian (Prime Meridian means chief or main meridian) having noon at the same time at all places on this line.
3. It is the 0° longitude.
4. It divides the earth into eastern and western hemispheres.
5. They are semicircles.
6. They are 360 in all -180 in the East and 180 in the West of Prime Meridian. 180°E and 180° W is one longitude.

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