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Colorful City and County Names

The world is full of colorfully named places. Students will explore some towns, cities, and counties that have colors in their name and illustrate them on a map.

Lesson Plan

Supplies Needed

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  • Paper
  • Poster Board
  • Ribbon
  • Tape

Steps

  • Step 1

    Have students think of places that have colors in their titles. Examples include Blue Ridge, Georgia; Greensboro, North Carolina; South Orange, New Jersey; Redwood, California; Silver Springs, Maryland; and so many others. Encourage them to think of places that use colors in another language, such as Mesa Verde, Colorado. And perhaps "fancy" color names such as Vermillion, Ohio and Auburn, Massachusetts. Ask students to discuss their thoughts on why a place might have that color in its name.

  • Step 2

    Have students find some of the places they came up with on a map. Then have them create a map and plot the places' names and the distances between them. They could then indicate a cross-country route from one place to the next using ribbon or yarn that they glue to the map.

  • Step 3

    Ask students to present their maps to the class and describe the cross-country journey they might take as they visit these colorful places.

Standards

MATH: Describe measurable attributes of objects, such as length or weight.  

SS: People, Places, and Environments: Use maps and other geographic representations, geospatial technologies, and spatial thinking to acquire, understand, and communicate information. 

Adaptations

Have students create an illustrated travelogue brochure describing the colorful journey travelers could take and the sights they would see along the way.

Have students pick two cities with the same colorful name that are in different states, such as Greenville, North Carolina and Greenville, South Carolina. Ask them to write about their similarities and differences. For example, what might the people in each city have in common? Are the climates similar? What is each city known for?