There are so many terms that refer to geographic location, from town, to county, to state, to country, continent, hemisphere. It's no wonder that these terms are often confused or misunderstood by elementary aged students. 

 

There is a section of the play that features an entertaining exhange. It happens when the children arrive in Athens, Greece and the local citizens are trying to learn where they are from. This collision of perspectives lends itself to teaching or re-teaching some of these terms.

 

One learning target for this could be: Students identify their "home" or a place of origin using all of the geographical terms that refer to "place".

To give context to this all, as well as humor, we should refer to the script. In this scene, the three children, totally foreign to Athens in 500 BC, are being asked where they are from. Naturally, the perspectives of the local citizens are shaped by their respective knowledge of the world, and their own terms for place. Please refer to the script, pages 9-11. Or, click here for this section of the script.

 

Students could reflect on questions such as these:

• How would you describe where you live? (Refer to village, town, city, county, state, region, country, continent, hemisphere, and other relevant terms)

• What might make sense to an audience in Athens, Greece around 500 B.C.?

• What would not make sense to such an audience?

• How would you describe a globe to them?

• How would you expect them to respond to your description? Why?