Great Lakes

I am a big, big puddle of water. So big you can’t see the other side. I am like a giant, sparkly bathtub for the whole country. I am not just one lake. I am five lakes all holding hands. Together, we are the Great Lakes. Hello. It is so nice to meet you. I love when the sun shines on me and makes my water glitter and dance. I have sandy shores and rocky shores where you can look for pretty stones. I am a very special place where lots of fun things happen.

A very, very long time ago, the world was very cold. Big, sleepy sheets of ice covered the land. They were like giant ice cubes. When the sun made the world warm again, the ice started to melt. Drip, drop, drip. The giant ice cubes slid and moved, carving big holes in the ground, like a giant spoon scooping out the earth. All the melted water filled up the big holes. And that's how I was made. The very first people to know me were the Anishinaabe. They paddled their quiet canoes on my water and sang songs about me. Many years later, in the 1600s, explorers like a man named Étienne Brûlé came on big ships with puffy white sails to see my sparkly blue water.

Today, I am a happy home for so many friends. I have wiggly fish that swim deep down and birds that fly high above. Busy beavers build their homes near my shores. So many children come to play with me. They build tall sandcastles on my sandy beaches. They splash and giggle in my cool, gentle waves. Big ships still sail across my water, carrying toys and food to different towns. I love being a place where everyone can come to have fun and see beautiful nature. I hope you will come visit me someday too.