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Marrakech worksheets: the Red City

A woman in a long blue robe buys fruit and vegetables at a stall, seen through a pink-red archway in a narrow lane, with a bicycle leaning on the wall
A market stall down a narrow lane in Marrakech. Photo: ::ErWin, “Marrakech 2017”, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0

Read all about Marrakech together, print a fact sheet for your child’s age, then make free quizzes and worksheets for ages 5 to 14: missing words, true or false, word matching and “Did you know?” sheets. Every roll gives a fresh sheet with answers.

Ages 5–14GeographyMoroccoNorth Africa

Print a fact sheetMake quizzes and worksheetsGet a ready-made pack

By Rich · Facts checked [TODO date]

Marrakech for kids

Marrakech (also spelled Marrakesh) is the fourth-largest city in Morocco and one of the country’s four imperial cities. It was founded nearly a thousand years ago. Its old town, the medina, is wrapped in red-orange walls that give it the nickname “the Red City”.

The medina is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, full of narrow streets, souks, palaces, gardens and mosques. At its heart is Jemaa el-Fnaa, a huge square where storytellers, musicians and acrobats perform. The city sits on a plain north of the Atlas Mountains, with long, hot, dry summers and short, mild winters.

Fun facts

  • A country named after a cityMany names for Morocco, like Maroc and Marruecos, come from the name Marrakech.
  • Cat cityMarrakech is famous for the huge number of cats in its streets. Some have moved into shops!
  • Storks on the palaceWhite storks nest on top of the ruined El Badi Palace walls.
  • 200 towersThe red city walls have 200 towers and 20 gates.
  • “Daughter of the ash”That’s the nickname of tanjia, a dish slow-cooked in a clay pot buried in hot ashes.
  • “Head of the shop”That’s what ras el hanout means. It’s a spice mix that can hold dozens of spices.
  • Tins into lanternsMetalworkers make candle holders from recycled sardine tins.
  • Hidden riversUnderground channels called khettaras carried water from the mountains to the old gardens.

Key words

medina
the old walled part of a city in North Africa
souk
a market, often a maze of small shops and stalls
riad
a traditional house built around a garden courtyard
minaret
a tall tower on a mosque
tagine
a slow-cooked meal, and the clay pot it’s cooked in
Amazigh
the Berber people of North Africa and their languages
haggling
agreeing on a price by bargaining with the seller
khettara
an underground channel that carries water

Timeline

  1. about 1070Marrakech founded by the Almoravids
  2. 1120sThe red city walls are built
  3. 1147The Almohads take the city and begin the Koutoubia Mosque
  4. 1157The Menara Gardens are made
  5. 1578El Badi Palace is begun
  6. 1912The French protectorate begins
  7. 1956Morocco becomes independent
  8. 1985The medina becomes a UNESCO World Heritage Site

For older children and teens

History and power
  • The Almoravids ruled from Marrakech over land reaching from Senegal to the middle of Spain.
  • Craftsmen from Córdoba and Seville helped build its monuments, mixing Andalusian, Saharan and West African styles.
  • Until 1867, European Christians needed the sultan’s permission to enter the city.
  • From 1912 T’hami El Glaoui, the “Lord of the Atlas”, ruled the city as pasha for almost the whole French protectorate.
The modern city
  • The agreement that created the World Trade Organization was signed here in 1994.
  • In 2009 Fatima-Zahra Mansouri became the city’s first female mayor.
  • In 1984 about half the city lived in the medina; by 2004 only 22% did, as homes became shops and hotels.
Environment
  • Groundwater under the city has fallen by about 0.9 m a year since 2002.
  • One 2019 study suggests its hottest month could be around 7 °C warmer by 2050.

Print the fact sheet

All the facts above on one A4 page, written for each age. Read it together, stick it on the wall, then try the quizzes below.

Choose a sheet to see it below, then print it.

Quiz time

Now check what they remember. Choose the age and the kind of sheet, roll for a fresh one, and print it with or without answers.

Make a Marrakech sheet

Age
Sheet

Ready-made packs

Everything for one child in one download: the fact sheet, the quizzes and the activities, with answers at the back. Printed once, ready for the week.

Teaching more than one child?The family bundle has all three packs in one file (35 pages), so everyone can do Marrakech together at their own level.
Download the bundle PDF, 0.9 MB
Ages 5–7Years 1–2

Marrakech pack, ages 5–7

  • Fact sheetbig text and a box to draw in
  • Missing wordswith a word bank
  • True or false
  • Match the wordskey words and meanings
  • Did you know?with a box to draw in
  • Marrakech word searchsmall grid, across and down
  • Colour by sum: mystery lanternadding to 10, from Colour by sum

7 sheets + 5 answer pages · 12 pages

Download the pack PDF, 487 KB
Ages 8–11Years 3–6

Marrakech pack, ages 8–11

  • Fact sheetwith lines for “my favourite fact”
  • Missing wordswith a word bank
  • True or false
  • Match the wordskey words and meanings
  • Mini quizmissing words plus true or false
  • Marrakech word searchmedium grid, adds diagonals
  • Colour by sum: mystery lanternmixed times tables

7 sheets + 6 answer pages · 13 pages

Download the pack PDF, 555 KB
Ages 12+Secondary

Marrakech pack, ages 12+

  • Fact sheetwith “going deeper” and a think question
  • Missing wordswith a word bank
  • True or false
  • Match the wordskey words and meanings
  • Think and discusstwo questions to write about
  • Marrakech word searchlarge grid, any direction

6 sheets + 4 answer pages · 10 pages

Download the pack PDF, 463 KB

Each pack is a PDF to print at home on A4, with the answers at the back. Every sheet in them can also be made fresh above. The cover shows the real fact sheet for each age.

More Marrakech activities

Mystery lantern: colour by sum

Maths · ages 5–11 · adding, take away or times tables

Make the sheet →

Marrakech word search

Key words · choose the size and difficulty

Make the sheet →