--- title: "Maths in Where we are in place and time: routes, maps and how far" description: "Two units for the Where we are in place and time island on Explorisle, Migration and Our town then and now: the maths in each station, a decision post, tasks." image: https://asurekha.com/hubfs/explorisle/app/share-1200x630.png --- ![](https://asurekha.com/hubfs/raw_assets/public/asurekha/assets/img/designed-schematic.jpg) [Skip to content](https://asurekha.com/explorisle/units/where-we-are-in-place-and-time#maincontent) [Ameera Surekha\_](https://asurekha.com/?hsLang=en-gb) ☰ - [About](https://asurekha.com/#builder) - [CV](https://asurekha.com/cv?hsLang=en-gb) - [Portfolio](https://asurekha.com/#work) - [Writing](https://asurekha.com/field-notes?hsLang=en-gb) - [Tools](https://asurekha.com/tools?hsLang=en-gb) - [Work with me](https://asurekha.com/work-with-me?hsLang=en-gb) - [Contact](https://asurekha.com/#contact) ● Unit of inquiry resource # Maths in Where we are in place and time This theme is about histories, moves and finding our way. The maths is position, distance and order: follow a route on a grid, take a bearing, work out how far, and put a move in order. Ameera Surekha, who built Explorisle at home for one child · 26 September 2026 ## The theme, in one paragraph Where we are in place and time is one of the six transdisciplinary themes used by IB PYP schools. On the island it carries two units. A teacher sets one as the class goal and the children who join get it. ## Unit one: Migration **Central idea (the island's own words):** People move for reasons, and the places they leave and arrive in both change. **Lines of inquiry:** why people move; the route; what moves with them. **Concepts:** change, perspective, causation. | Station | What the child does | The maths | | --- | --- | --- | | The route | follows the route on a grid, then by compass | Shape and space: coordinates, turns, bearings from Year 4 | | In order | puts the move in order: packing, the road, the crossing, arriving, settling | Sequence | | How far | reads the distances and adds them | Measurement: distance, kilometres and metres | **The decision post, The suitcase:** One thing to pack: the book you know by heart, a photo, a recipe, a toy? There is no wrong answer; the child gives a reason, and the reason lands on the class sheet. **The exhibit:** finish the stations and the child earns a suitcase for their own plot. ## Unit two: Our town then and now **Central idea (the island's own words):** Places change over time, and people decide what to keep. **Lines of inquiry:** the town long ago; what changed and why; what to keep. **Concepts:** change, perspective, causation. | Station | What the child does | The maths | | --- | --- | --- | | Then and now | puts the town's pictures in order | Sequence and time | | The old map | finds places on the old map and the new one | Shape and space: grids and compass points | | Counting the change | counts what the town has more and less of | Number and data | **The decision post, What to keep:** The old station, the market, the park, the mill? There is no wrong answer; the child gives a reason, and the reason lands on the class sheet. **The exhibit:** finish the stations and the child earns a suitcase for their own plot. ## Tasks for the classroom without a screen - Every child's family has a route somewhere. Pin it, grid it, measure it with string against the map scale. Add them up. - Two maps of your town, fifty years apart. Same grid. What is at B3 on each? - The eight compass points on the playground with chalk. Give directions from the gate to the tree. Then in bearings. ## The evidence sheet On the island, tap **For teachers** on the first screen, make a class (you get a six-character code and a teacher key), set the level for the class, and pick this unit as the class goal. Children join with the code and a seat number; no name, no email. The **evidence sheet** in the class view prints the central idea, the lines of inquiry, the concepts, what each station practised, and every seat's findings and reasons, ready to paste into your planner. On the island [Open the theme islands](https://explorisle.asurekha.com)[About Explorisle](https://asurekha.com/explorisle?hsLang=en-gb) **Not on the island yet:** a unit on time zones and a unit on ancient number systems. On the list. Read next - [Maths inside a unit of inquiry, without losing the maths](https://asurekha.com/explorisle/teachers/maths-in-a-unit-of-inquiry?hsLang=en-gb) - [The primary maths scope and sequence, explained](https://asurekha.com/explorisle/maths/scope-and-sequence?hsLang=en-gb) - [Sharing the planet](https://asurekha.com/explorisle/units/sharing-the-planet?hsLang=en-gb) - [How we organise ourselves](https://asurekha.com/explorisle/units/how-we-organise-ourselves?hsLang=en-gb) Explorisle is an independent product of A Surekha (the registered business of Ameera Surekha). It is not endorsed by, affiliated with or licensed by the International Baccalaureate Organization. IB, PYP and International Baccalaureate are registered trademarks of the IBO. Ameera Surekha\_ I lead marketing and I build the systems underneath: the strategy, the team, and the code. A.S. / EST. 2014 · Built by hand. Still no CMS, no page builder. Explore - [About](https://asurekha.com/#builder) - [CV](https://asurekha.com/cv?hsLang=en-gb) - [Portfolio](https://asurekha.com/#work) - [Writing](https://asurekha.com/field-notes?hsLang=en-gb) - [Tools](https://asurekha.com/tools?hsLang=en-gb) - [Work with me](https://asurekha.com/work-with-me?hsLang=en-gb) - [Privacy](https://asurekha.com/privacy?hsLang=en-gb) Practical - Netherlands · works across Europe - English · Dutch · Malay - Punjabi & Hindi (conversational) - Indonesian (spoken) - [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/ameerasug) · [Email](mailto:ameera@asurekha.com) Backdrop: abstract study, AI-generated · 2026AI-generated backdrop · 2026 Motion: on Free  ·  no account  ·  no adverts  ·  ages 5 to 12  ·  explorisle.asurekha.com  ·  Free  ·  no account  ·  no adverts  ·  ages 5 to 12  ·  explorisle.asurekha.com  ·  Pause ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@id" : "https://asurekha.com/explorisle/units/where-we-are-in-place-and-time#article", "@type" : "Article", "about" : { "@id" : "https://asurekha.com/explorisle#app", "@type" : "SoftwareApplication", "name" : "Explorisle", "url" : "https://asurekha.com/explorisle" }, "author" : { "@id" : "https://asurekha.com/#ameera", "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Ameera Surekha", "url" : "https://asurekha.com/" }, "dateModified" : "2026-09-26", "datePublished" : "2026-09-26", "description" : "Two units for the Where we are in place and time island on Explorisle, Migration and Our town then and now: the maths in each station, a decision post, tasks.", "headline" : "Maths in Where we are in place and time", "inLanguage" : "en-GB", "isAccessibleForFree" : true, "isPartOf" : { "@type" : "WebSite", "name" : "Ameera Surekha", "url" : "https://asurekha.com/" }, "name" : "Maths in Where we are in place and time", "publisher" : { "@id" : "https://asurekha.com/#ameera", "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Ameera Surekha" }, "url" : "https://asurekha.com/explorisle/units/where-we-are-in-place-and-time" } ``` ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement" : [ { "@type" : "ListItem", "item" : "https://asurekha.com/", "name" : "Home", "position" : 1 }, { "@type" : "ListItem", "item" : "https://asurekha.com/tools", "name" : "Tools", "position" : 2 }, { "@type" : "ListItem", "item" : "https://asurekha.com/explorisle", "name" : "Explorisle", "position" : 3 }, { "@type" : "ListItem", "item" : "https://asurekha.com/explorisle/units/where-we-are-in-place-and-time", "name" : "Maths in Where we are in place and time", "position" : 4 } ] } ```