Map Skills for Pakistan Studies Paper 2: What to Learn and How to Practise

Strong Pakistan Studies map skills are the quickest way to raise a Paper 2 score. Location and resource-reading marks need no long writing — only practice.

Quick answer: For Paper 2, students should be able to locate Pakistan’s provinces, major cities, rivers, mountain ranges, deserts, dams, ports and mineral areas on an outline map, and to read climate graphs, bar and line graphs, pie charts, tables and photographs.

Locations You Must Know

• Physical: Karakoram, Himalayas, Hindu Kush, Sulaiman and Kirthar ranges; Potwar Plateau, Salt Range, Balochistan Plateau; Thar, Thal and Kharan deserts.
• Rivers: Indus, Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Sutlej and Kabul.
• Dams and barrages: Tarbela, Mangla, Sukkur, Kotri, Guddu.
• Cities and ports: Karachi, Port Qasim, Gwadar, Lahore, Faisalabad, Islamabad, Peshawar, Quetta, Multan, Hyderabad, Sialkot.
• Lines: the Tropic of Cancer and neighbouring countries.

Reading Graphs and Tables

• State the overall trend first, then quote figures with units.
• For climate graphs, give the highest and lowest temperature, the range and the wettest months.
• Compare, do not list: use words like “higher than” and “whereas”.

Describing Photographs

• Describe only what you can see: relief, vegetation, land use, buildings.
• Use geographical terms such as “steep slopes”, “terraced fields”, “sparse vegetation”.
• Do not explain unless the question asks for reasons.

A Weekly Practice Routine

• Day 1: fill in a blank outline map from memory, then check it.
• Day 2: one graph or table question from a past paper.
• Day 3: one photograph question.
• Repeat with a new theme each week.

More Help

Start with topography of Pakistan for the physical map, then the important Paper 2 topics. If you want guided practice, see what the best Geography teacher for Paper 2 covers.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are map questions compulsory in Pakistan Studies Paper 2?

Maps, graphs, photographs and other resources appear throughout Paper 2, so every candidate will need map and data skills.

How do I learn the map of Pakistan quickly?

Practise filling in a blank outline map from memory several times a week, one theme at a time: rivers, mountains, cities, then dams and minerals.

How do I describe a climate graph?

State the highest and lowest temperatures and the months they occur, the temperature range, and the wettest and driest months with rainfall figures.