Decimal degrees

Okay, so imagine you are playing a game of hide-and-seek with your friends in a big park. Your parents have given you a map of the park, and on the map, there are little lines and numbers that tell you where everything is in the park. But instead of just saying "the swing set is over there," the map uses something called decimal degrees to show you exactly where everything is.

Decimal degrees are like a secret code that tells you where things are on the map. You know how when you play games, you use a grid system to find things? Like, you say "A3" to point to the spot on the game board where your game piece is. Decimal degrees work kind of like that, but they use numbers instead of letters and numbers.

Decimal degrees are used to show you the latitude and longitude of places on Earth. So when you look at your map of the park, you might see that the swing set is at a latitude of 38.9072° N and a longitude of 77.0369° W. That's like the secret code that tells you exactly where the swing set is in the park.

Think of it like this: imagine you are standing at the starting line of a race. The race is going to take you around the park, but you don't know which way to go. Your parents give you a compass, which is a tool that tells you which way you are facing. The compass has little numbers on it that help you know which direction you're going. Decimal degrees work kind of like that, too. They help you know which way to go and where things are on your map.

So, decimal degrees are like a secret code that tells you where things are on a map. They use numbers to show you the latitude and longitude of places on Earth. Just like a compass helps you know which way to go, decimal degrees help you find things on a map.