Street Smarts

Last summer, 13-year-old Gracie Spooner of Mount Clemens, Michigan, took her first trip to Washington, D.C. She was with friends from her local 4-H club and about 200 other middle school kids from across the U.S. They were taking part in a national 4-H program called Leadership Washington Focus. 

During the five-day event, the students took part in activities inspired by the work that goes on in the nation’s capital. Gracie, for example, spoke in front of a group about what she would do if she were elected president. They also saw a lot of famous places in and around the city. One of Gracie’s favorites was the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, a site related to the National Air and Space Museum. “There are simulators that spin you all the way around like you are in a real rocket ship,” she says. 

This map shows how part of the city looks today. The lines on the map divide the city into boxes, creating a grid. Each box has coordinates—a letter and a number that correspond to the vertical column and horizontal row it is located in. A grid map also has an index (see page 4) that lists places on the map with the coordinates of the box they are found in. This can help you find each place on the map. Use the map to answer the questions and learn more about the other sites that Gracie and her friends got to see! 

1. In what ways is a grid map similar to other maps you have looked at? In what ways does it differ? Why do you think that is?

2. What do many of the streets that run north-south in Washington, D.C., have in common? What about streets that run east-west?

3. Washington, D.C., is a planned city. What do you think that means? How might it differ from cities that are not planned?