No Place Like Home

Lesson Author

Stephanie Anderson

Grades: 2-3

Lesson Summary

This lesson introduces the concepts of urban, suburban, and rural places through the book The City Kid and the Suburb Kid and Google Earth.

Literature Connection

The City Kid and the Suburb Kid by Deb Pilutti (Illust. by Linda Bleck)

This flip book presents the story of two boys, Jack and Adam. Jack is from the city, while Adam lives in a suburban area. When Jack and Adam visit one another, they learn how life in cities and suburbs is the same in some ways and different in others. During, Jack�s trip to the suburbs, the two boys go for a bike ride, fish, take a trip to the mall, climb a tree, and play in Adam�s yard. When Adam visits Jack in the city, they play in Jack�s neighborhood, go fishing in the city park, explore the shops of downtown, see the city from the top of a building, eat takeout, and watch the city lights late at night. While both boys initially enjoy the unique opportunities available in the place he visits, each ends up missing his own neighborhood.

National Geography Standard(s)

• Students will understand the physical and human characteristics of places. 

• Students will understand the locations of places within the local community and in nearby communities.

Concepts and Skills

urban, rural, suburban

Objectives

By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

1. identify and classify different locations as urban, suburban, or rural.

2. identify similarities and differences associated with living in an urban, rural, and suburban location

Google Skills Needed

• fly to different locations

• zoom in and out of locations

  make placemarks that are contained in a folder

• email folder containing placemarks

Step-by-Step Teaching Procedures (PDF document)