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Subjects

• Language Arts
• Social Sciences
• Ed. Technology

Grades

• 3-5
• 6-8

Brief Description

Students use clues to identify U.S. cities with unusual names and plot them on a map.

Objectives

• use context clues to identify the names of U.S. cities with unusual names,
• use library and/or Internet sources to find the geographic location of a list of U.S. cities,
• demonstrate abilities to plot cities on a map.

Keywords

geography, place, cities, United States, name, unusual, map

Materials Needed

• copies of What's in a Name?
• pens or pencils
• computers with Internet access
• library sources or Internet map sites
• pushpins or markers
• United States map that shows each state

Lesson Plan

• Ask students to name some cities in the United States. Give students a few unusual city names (for example, Santa Claus, Indiana; Bug, Kentucky; Bird in Hand, Pennsylvania). Ask students whether they think the names are real or made up.
• Distribute What's in a Name? work sheet. Tell students to use the clues on the sheet to figure out other unusual city names.
• When everyone has finished, check the answers as a group.
• Arrange students into small groups. Assign each group three or four cities from the work sheet. Tell students to search library or Internet sources to locate the cities on a map. Possible sites include MapQuest or Bing Maps.
• When everyone has finished, have each group use pushpins or markers to plot their assigned cities.

  Variations for younger students:

• Arrange students into pairs or small groups to complete the work sheet.
• Provide a word bank with the city names in alphabetical order to help students complete the work sheet.

  Extension: Share other unusual city names from Interesting U.S. Town Names.

Assessment

Lesson Plan Source

Submitted By

Lois Lewis

National Standards

Language Arts:
NL-ENG.K-12.1
NL-ENG.K-12.3
NL-ENG.K-12.8

Technology:
NT.K-12.1
NT.K-12.5

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