Palo Alto, California for kids
The Tall Stick Tree. A true story near Palo Alto, CA, told for kids 6-8.
Read along
Do you know what Palo Alto means? It's Spanish for tall stick! The city is named after one real tree, a coastal redwood called El Palo Alto. Just one tree, and a whole city took its name!
Redwoods are among the tallest trees in the whole world. Wow, that is a lot of tall! Imagine telling your friends you live in Tall Stick City! Now let's play a game.
Look out the window and find the tallest tree you can see. Point to it. Can you stretch your arms up high like a tall, tall tree?
Quiz the back seat
What does Palo Alto mean in Spanish?
Show the answer
Tall stick. Tall stick! And the city is named after one real redwood tree.
3 fun facts
- Palo Alto means 'tall stick' in Spanish.
- The city is named after a coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto.
- Redwood trees are among the tallest trees in the world.
For grown-ups
Written with AI from public sources, then checked claim by claim against the sources below before it was published; stories that don't pass stay off the app and this site. Narration is pre-recorded, and nothing you do on this page is tied to your kids.
Sources
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Town and county names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0).