Coordinate plane paper generator

How the axes work

A coordinate plane has a horizontal x-axis and a vertical y-axis crossing at the origin, (0, 0). Every point is written as a pair (x, y): go along first, then up or down. A handy reminder for children is 'along the corridor, then up the stairs'.

The four quadrants

In England, pupils usually meet coordinates in the first quadrant before extending to all four, which is why there is a first-quadrant 0 to 10 option as well as four-quadrant sheets.

• First quadrant (top right): x and y are both positive, for example (3, 4).
• Second quadrant (top left): x is negative, y is positive, for example (−3, 4).
• Third quadrant (bottom left): both negative, for example (−3, −4).
• Fourth quadrant (bottom right): x positive, y negative, for example (3, −4).

Try this: plot a hidden shape

1. Print the four-quadrant −10 to 10 sheet.
2. Plot these points in order and join each one to the next: (0, 6), (2, 2), (6, 2), (3, −1), (4, −5), (0, −3), (−4, −5), (−3, −1), (−6, 2), (−2, 2), then back to (0, 6).
3. You should see a star. Now reflect it in the x-axis by changing the sign of every y value and plot it again.

Choosing a range

The −10 to 10 range gives large, easy-to-read squares for most school work. The −20 to 20 option packs in more points for straight-line graphs or larger designs. Print at 100% so each unit is the same size across both axes.