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Identifying important buildings and places that help us know where we are.
Imagine you are a tiny bird flying high in the sky. How would you find your way home without a phone? You would look for big, special buildings that stand out from the rest!
A landmark is a place or building that is easy to see and remember. Think of them as "giant clues" in your neighborhood. Landmarks help us know where we are. If you see the big park with the blue slide, you might know that your house is just around the corner! Landmarks are special because they look different from the houses around them. They might be taller, a different color, or have a big sign that tells us what they are.
Quick Check
What do we call a special building that helps us find our way?
Answer
A landmark.
Every landmark has a purpose, which is the reason why it is there. A school is a landmark where we go to learn and play with friends. A grocery store is a landmark where families buy food like apples and bread. A park is an open space with grass and trees where people exercise or relax. Knowing what happens inside a building helps us remember what it is and why it is important to our neighborhood.
1. Look at a building with a tall flagpole and a playground. 2. Ask yourself: 'Where do children go to learn?' 3. You have identified the school!
Quick Check
If you need to buy milk and eggs, which landmark would you look for?
Answer
The grocery store.
A map is a drawing of a place from high above, like looking down from a plane. On a map, landmarks often look like small pictures called symbols. A school might look like a tiny red building with a bell. A park might look like a green tree. To find a landmark, you look at the symbols and see what is next to them. If the library is next to the park, you look for the tree symbol first to find your way!
1. Find the Library symbol (a small book). 2. Find the Park symbol (a small tree). 3. If the library is to the left of the park, move your finger from the tree to the book!
Imagine you walk block from your house to the store, and then blocks from the store to the school. 1. Start at the house. 2. Move block to the store symbol. 3. Move more blocks to the school symbol. 4. You walked a total of blocks!
Which of these is a neighborhood landmark?
What is the purpose of a grocery store?
A map is a drawing of a place as if you were looking down from high above.
Review Tomorrow
In 24 hours, try to remember the names of three landmarks you see when you leave your house.
Practice Activity
Draw a simple map of your own street. Include your house and one landmark, like a park or a big tree!