Geography by Counties
Learning Your State's Counties, Townships, and Parishes
A unit study is outlined simply for classroom or homeschooling use. Plenty of ideas for learning the counties of a state are introduced for parents and teachers.
A tornado warning has been issued for Kingfisher County. Does cotton grow in Cotton County? Where is Pushmataha County? Every adult needs to know the counties of his state. These simple divisions are used for voting, locating, weather reports, and news reporting. If you know your counties you will be ahead when it comes to navigating your state.
Two states use different terms for counties. Michigan calls its divisions townships. Louisiana uses the term parish. The word county is used in England and Wales. It referred to the domain of a Count. A count was an English nobleman who was responsible to give account for the number of persons residing in his domain. It is now used as a territorial division within the United States.
Why learn the counties? A reader will come across a county name in newspaper many times per issue. When the county is mentioned in news reports, in voting returns, as a location of a town, or as the area within the state expecting bad weather or hosting an upcoming event, then the student will benefit from knowing his counties.
Supplies Needed
- One large sheet of poster board
- Crayons or colored map pencils
- Newspapers
- A state map with the counties labeled
- A reference book about your state's history a can be helpful.
Study the State Map
Look over and discuss the state map. As the students draw the state on their poster board, they should review the geographical features and which other states, countries, or bodies of water border the state.
Divide the State into Regions
Divide the state into informal areas. For example, Oklahomans usually group their counties into “Green Country,” “Great Plains Country,” “Lake Country,” or " Red Carpet Country,” etc. Divide the state into regions to make study simpler. Outline regions with a dark pencil.
Label the Counties
Taking one region at a time, fill in the names of the counties. As a group, research each county and write down interesting facts about it. Use the internet or local library to sleuth out historical facts about the counties. Look at the names. Where do they come from? President's name, a past governor, Indian tribe, other?
Label the counties in neat block letters. After outlining, labeling, and coloring each county in the region, take time to study the spelling of each county name. When one region has been studied and discussed and the names learned go on to the next region.
Ideas for Memorizing Names
- Write the county names on index cards.
- Design a crossword puzzle or a hidden word puzzle with the county names.
- Make a list of the counties with a funny associative word to help you remember the county name. Here are some simple examples from Oklahoma counties Cimarron (Cinnamon), Texas (toast), Alfalfa (sprouts), Hughes (blues)
- Hold a competition at the beginning of each class session to see who can fill in the names as the teacher points to a county.
- Label a city or town in each county.
- Look up ten well-known persons from your state and find the county each is from. s
Finding Counties Game
Spread newspapers out on the floor or table. Hold a session of at least 45 minutes wherein the students look through the newspapers for the names of counties. As they find a county name, students should tear out the sample. The sample must have the full name, as in Tulsa County.
After time is called on this treasure hunt, students draw a star on their colored maps on each county they found in the search—one star for each example found. This will reinforce the locations of the counties in their minds. Display the finished state maps.
Learning the counties, townships, or parishes in your home state can be highly beneficial. Students will be able to better differentiate locations in newscasts and weather warnings, and also find his way while traveling.
