Singapore sits almost on the equator. Houston is farther north.

New York is farther north still, and the North Pole is as far north as you can get.

Singapore, Houston, New York and Sydney on the globe, with the lines named.

How far north or south of the equator a place is, is called its latitude.

Latitude is counted in degrees. The equator is at 0 degrees, and each pole is at 90 degrees.

Houston is at about 30 degrees north, and New York at about 41 degrees north.

The North Pole is at 90 degrees north.

Sydney, in Australia, is south of the equator, at about 34 degrees south.

Five places and their latitudes: how far north or south of the equator each one is.

The lines on the globe mark latitudes. Every place on one line is the same distance from the equator.

The nearer a place is to the equator, the lower its latitude.

The nearer a place is to a pole, the higher its latitude.