Free original lessons
Draw Alaska: Grid Tracing, Coastline, and Landmark Placement
Learn to reproduce Alaska’s irregular outline on a grid, trace coastal indentations, and place landmark markers with a legend. Includes a worked example, four practice tasks, and a rubric.
Free lesson
Four exercises
Worked answers
Object Drawing Lessons
This lesson teaches a reliable method for drawing a large irregular landmass: Alaska. You will use a gridded reference outline, a matching blank grid, and a simple convention for landmark markers. The goal is not a single perfect line but a faithful reproduction of major shape features and relative positions. You will practice tracing coastline segments, transferring the outline square by square, and placing landmark dots with a legend. All measurements are checkable with a ruler and simple arithmetic. The printable resources described here are planned, not yet produced; the instructional steps work with any grid you draw yourself.
Practice materials: Printable downloads are not available for this lesson yet. Use the instructions and four exercises below.
Set up a matching grid and define your marker convention
Draw a square grid on your reference outline and an identical grid on your blank paper. Use the same number of squares and the same square size. For example, a hypothetical 10 by 10 grid with 2 cm squares gives a 20 cm by 20 cm drawing area. Label columns A–J left to right and rows 1–10 bottom to top. This coordinate system lets you describe any point as a cell and a position within that cell.
Define landmark markers before drawing. Use a filled circle of about 4 mm diameter for a landmark, with a short leader line to a legend box. In the legend, write the landmark name and the grid coordinate of the dot. This convention is explicit and checkable: a marker is valid if its dot center lies within the stated cell and its leader line does not cross another marker. Letter styles and handwriting vary, so the legend text may be printed, cursive, or block letters as long as it is readable.
- Draw the reference grid and the blank grid with the same dimensions.
- Label columns and rows on both grids.
- Draw a legend box in a corner of the blank sheet.
- Decide the marker size and leader-line rule, then write it beside the legend.
Transfer the outline square by square
Work one grid square at a time. In each cell, note where the coastline enters and leaves the square. Record the entry and exit points as fractions of the cell width or height. For example, the coast may enter cell C4 at the left edge halfway up and leave at the bottom edge one-quarter from the left. On the blank grid, mark those two points and connect them with a smooth curve that matches the reference’s curvature.
Check each square before moving on. Measure the distance from the entry point to the nearest grid line and compare it with the reference. A difference of one or two millimetres is acceptable for a hand drawing. Keep the pencil light so you can adjust. After all squares are transferred, erase the grid lines gently or leave them as construction lines; the rubric allows either, provided the outline remains clear.
- For each cell, write entry and exit fractions on a scratch list.
- Mark entry and exit points on the blank grid.
- Connect the points with a smooth curve.
- Measure and compare key distances to the reference.
- Adjust before darkening the final outline.
Trace coastal indentations and place landmarks
Coastal indentations are the small bays and inlets that make the outline irregular. Trace them as short arcs between two grid points. Do not invent detail smaller than one-tenth of a cell; the grid cannot support it reliably. For each indentation, record the two endpoints and the direction of the curve. A useful check is to count the number of indentations per row and compare with the reference.
Place landmark markers after the outline is stable. Choose three to five landmarks and assign each a grid coordinate. Put the dot center at that coordinate, draw a leader line to the legend, and write the name. Verify placement by measuring from the dot to the nearest two grid lines. If the dot is meant to be in cell F7, its center must lie inside that cell. The legend must list every marker exactly once.
- List each indentation with its two endpoints and curve direction.
- Draw indentations as short arcs between grid points.
- Choose landmarks and assign grid coordinates.
- Place dots, draw leader lines, and complete the legend.
- Check that every marker appears once in the legend.
Use a consistent rubric and self-check
The rubric below separates shape accuracy, coastline detail, marker placement, and legend clarity. Because handwriting and letter styles vary, the rubric does not require a specific font or line weight. It does require that the outline’s major features are recognizable and that marker coordinates match the legend. Measure actual equipment, such as your ruler and pencil, rather than assuming a printer tolerance. Any numerical values in this lesson are hypothetical examples for practice.
A simple self-check is to overlay your drawing on the reference grid and compare cell by cell. Count the number of cells where the outline crosses the same edges at roughly the same fractions. A score of 80 percent or higher on edge crossings is a strong result for a hand drawing. Then check each marker’s cell coordinate against the legend.
- Overlay the drawing on the reference grid.
- Count matching edge crossings per cell.
- Check each marker’s cell coordinate against the legend.
- Record any mismatches and correct them.
Worked example
A reference grid has 10 columns (A–J) and 10 rows (1–10). In cell C4, the coastline enters at the left edge halfway up and leaves at the bottom edge one-quarter from the left. On a blank grid of the same size, describe how to transfer this segment and check it.
Worked answer
Mark the entry point at the midpoint of the left edge of C4. Mark the exit point at one-quarter of the bottom edge from the left corner. Connect them with a smooth curve that bulges slightly outward, matching the reference. Check by measuring from the entry point to the top-left corner of C4: it should be half the cell height. Measure from the exit point to the bottom-left corner: it should be one-quarter of the cell width. If both measurements match within about 2 mm, the segment is acceptable.
Four practice exercises
Exercise 1
On a 10 by 10 grid with 2 cm squares, a coastline enters cell D6 at the top edge one-third from the left and leaves at the right edge halfway down. Describe the two points and the check you would perform.
Show answer and check
Entry: top edge of D6, one-third of 2 cm (about 0.67 cm) from the top-left corner. Exit: right edge of D6, halfway down (1 cm from the top-right corner). Check by measuring both distances with a ruler; each should match the stated fraction within about 2 mm.
Why: The fractions convert to simple lengths because the cell size is known. Measuring from the nearest corners gives a direct check without relying on an image.
Check: Measure entry distance from the top-left corner of D6 and exit distance from the top-right corner; compare with 0.67 cm and 1 cm.
Exercise 2
A landmark is assigned to cell F7. The dot center is 1.5 cm from the left edge of the cell and 0.5 cm from the bottom edge. The cell is 2 cm by 2 cm. Is the dot inside F7? Show the arithmetic.
Show answer and check
Yes. The dot is 1.5 cm from the left and 0.5 cm from the bottom, both less than 2 cm, so the center lies inside F7. The remaining distances are 0.5 cm to the right edge and 1.5 cm to the top edge.
Why: A point is inside a square cell if both distances from the edges are between 0 and the cell size. Here both are within 0 to 2 cm.
Check: Subtract each distance from 2 cm to confirm positive remainders: 2 − 1.5 = 0.5 cm and 2 − 0.5 = 1.5 cm.
Exercise 3
You count 6 coastal indentations in row 5 of the reference and 4 in your drawing. The row has 10 cells. What is the difference, and what check would you do next?
Show answer and check
The difference is 2 indentations. Next, compare each cell in row 5 and list which indentations are missing, then check whether each missing one has two clear endpoints in the reference.
Why: Counting per row is a simple arithmetic check. Listing missing items turns the count difference into specific corrections.
Check: Recount both rows independently and confirm the totals 6 and 4 before listing missing indentations.
Exercise 4
Your blank grid has 10 columns and 10 rows with 2 cm squares. You measure the full width as 20 cm and the full height as 20 cm. The reference grid measures 20 cm by 20 cm but has 12 columns and 10 rows. What is wrong, and how do you fix it?
Show answer and check
The column counts differ (10 versus 12), so the square widths differ even though the total width matches. Fix by redrawing the blank grid with 12 columns of equal width, or by redrawing the reference with 10 columns, so both grids have identical square counts and sizes.
Why: Matching total dimensions is not enough; the number of squares must also match for square-by-square transfer to work.
Check: Divide total width by column count on each grid: 20 ÷ 10 = 2 cm and 20 ÷ 12 ≈ 1.67 cm. The unequal results confirm the mismatch.
Common mistakes
- Drawing the whole outline first and adding grid checks later. Transfer one square at a time and verify entry and exit points before connecting them.
- Placing a landmark dot near a cell boundary without recording which cell it belongs to. State the cell coordinate in the legend and keep the dot center clearly inside that cell.
- Adding tiny coastal details that are smaller than one-tenth of a grid cell. Limit detail to features the grid can support; record only indentations with two clear endpoints.
- Using different grid sizes on the reference and blank sheets. Measure both grids with the same ruler and confirm identical square counts and sizes before drawing.
Self-check rubric
- Outline major features are recognizable and match the reference in at least 80 percent of grid-edge crossings.
- Coastal indentations are drawn as short arcs with recorded endpoints; no detail smaller than one-tenth of a cell is invented.
- Each landmark dot center lies inside its stated grid cell, and each marker appears exactly once in the legend.
- Legend text is readable in any consistent letter style, and leader lines do not cross other markers.
- Grid setup uses identical square counts and sizes on reference and blank sheets, verified by measurement.
Questions and answers
Do I need the planned printable to complete the lesson?
No. You can draw a square grid on any paper and use the same method. The printable is planned as a convenience, not a requirement.
How many landmarks should I place?
Three to five is enough to practice placement and legend work. More markers increase checking time without adding new skills.
Can I leave the grid lines visible?
Yes. The rubric allows construction lines if the outline and markers remain clear. Erasing is optional.
What if my coastline curve differs slightly from the reference?
Small differences are acceptable. Check that entry and exit points are close and that the number and direction of major indentations match.