Trace an outline of the state of North Carolina on a large poster board.
Decide what information you want your 4th grader to show on his map. His map can be a climate, resource, physical feature, political or topographic map.
Research the information your 4th grader needs to complete his map project. For example, if he is doing a climate map, he should research the average temperatures and precipitation for the different regions of the state of North Carolina. If your child decides to do a physical feature map, he should research the mountains, lakes, rivers or streams, as well as highways, roads, railroad tracks and airports in North Carolina. If he wishes to do a political map, he would need to research the populations of the cities and towns in North Carolina, as well as the county boundary lines.
Ask your child to color different regions of North Carolina to signify differences in climate and precipitation on a climate map. Have your child divide the state up into regions that share generally the same climate and precipitation. For example, for an area that is warmer with less precipitation, he could color it red, but for an area with a cooler climate and higher precipitation, he could color it green. For a physical feature map, he would need to use symbols for the different features and label them in a key. For example, for airports he could draw the outline of an airplane. On a political map he could use dotted lines to draw the outlines of county boundaries.
Create a key for the map that corresponds to the colors or symbols used on the map. For example, the key should identify what each of the colors represents on a climate map, such as green for cooler climates and red for hotter climates. The key should identify the symbols used on a physical feature or political map, such as mountains or cities.
Title the map based on the information that is represented. For example, you may wish to have your child title his climate map, "Average Climate and Precipitation of North Carolina." For a physical feature map, he could title it, "Landmarks of the Great State of North Carolina." The map title should give a clue as to what information a person should expect to get from reading the map.