City Circles

by Steve Bennett

Did you know your family members could run circles around any city while they're traveling? Well, they can, as long as they have reliable maps to which they can refer.

Give your young players a map, and keep a copy of each map for yourself. Then call out the name of a city -- say, Columbus, Ohio. Ask the first player to find that city on the map and draw an imaginary ring around it. Specify the diameter of the city circle, and then ask your child to answer questions about what he or she can find within that ring.

For example, you might ask how many cities, state capitals, rivers, lakes, and mountain ranges your child can find within 200 miles. Once a child has answered all your questions, ask him or her to expand the imaginary ring (to, say, 300, 500, or 700 miles). Then name another city, or perhaps choose another player, and begin the game again.

As an alternative, you might ask your kids to predict how many cities, state capitals, and the like they will find inside a given city ring. See which child's answers come the closest. That player gets to wear the "royal city ring" (actually, a toy ring or paper band) and choose a city for the next round. So who can guess how many lakes you'll find within 500 miles of Detroit?

More on: Geography