Annotated diagrams and maps require students to add brief comments or explanations directly onto geographical diagrams and maps to describe and emphasize specific features. Comments should be placed in the appropriate locations and provide context to supplement the visual information. Examination questions often ask for fully annotated diagrams and maps, which means adding multiple annotations directly on the diagrams and maps themselves instead of just including labels or descriptions separately.

1. Geographic Skills
Annotated diagrams & maps

2. Annotated maps & diagrams
Annotation:
a brief sentence, descriptive and/or explanation, applied to a
particular feature or features on a map, diagram or
photograph.

3. Annotated diagrams
Examination questions frequently refer to the need to include “fully
annotated diagrams”. These diagrams require some comment to be
added to the actual diagram, explaining, elaborating or emphasizing
particular features.
A comment such as “high birth rates” is best added directly to the
diagram in the appropriate place.

4. Example: Tropical cyclone
Using only an annotated diagram describe the change of
weather that can be experienced as the weather system
passes directly overhead

6. Annotated maps

8. NIST geography I.A. example

9. NIST geography I.A. example

10. • A base map at the simplest
level may be only an outline
of a geographical area
showing just enough
information to allow the
reader to recognise the area
concerned.

11. In IB Geography
Examination questions frequently refer to the need for “fully
annotated maps”. Annotating maps requires students to
include comments on the map itself and to place these
comments in the relevant locations. Comments added after
the maps are not acceptable.

12. NIST geography I.A. example
Note: in the fieldwork, labels
(anything <10 words. e.g.
names of countries on map
below) do not count for the
word limit while annotations
(anything >10 words) do
count.

13. Common problems tend to be that students produce small,
untidy, inaccurate maps that are not located and lack
orientation.

14. Skill Application
10 minute test:
Use an annotated diagram to explain the population
distribution of one country