Cardinal Directions — Prelims Strategy

Prelims Strategy

Underline the requested output before drawing: final direction from a reference point, current facing direction, path length or shortest separation. Write the initial facing direction explicitly. A turn changes orientation; a movement changes position. Keeping those actions separate prevents a left turn while facing south from being recorded as a westward move.

Use a small coordinate ledger instead of a scale drawing. Record east and north as positive, west and south as negative, and combine only movements along the same axis. For distance options, first compare the final horizontal and vertical components. A familiar right triangle can then make the calculation immediate, but do not force an approximate drawing into a special triangle.

Test distractors by naming the error they represent: full route length, sum of net components, reversed reference person or final facing substituted for final location. Check units and whether the route returns to the origin. If the problem does not determine a unique answer, construct two allowed routes rather than choose the most visually convenient one. This final sufficiency check is part of the solution.