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Angel
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I know there was a thread a while back about reading books set in all 50 states, but I can't find it. This year I'm planning to study US geography with my younger boys (ages 6-10, with the 3 yo along for the ride as always) and I've been looking at some book lists and blog posts for ideas. I know that the Sleeping Bear press books are popular (see the state-by-state study at Shower of Roses) but I think I want to read a little more widely and maybe not do so much scrapbooky stuff. (My boys are not big on coloring/drawing, so just a little will do.)
I found these lists of books:
Mrs. McGowan's 50 States Book List
Miss Rumphius Effect: Stately Study
Miss Rumphius Effect: Map Skills
(More generic about maps in general, but there's a link to a neat site where you can generate your own map of all the states you've visted.)
Carol Hurst: The State We're In
(Books for somewhat older readers and some of them seem sort of  to me in terms of theme and mood, but I may hand my 9th grader a few of the titles.)
Anything else out there? Any examples of how you've done state study? I have boys, so I'm thinking that I will be incorporating some weird facts into our study for interest.  I think we'll start with the US in general and then go on to our home state (Mississippi). My 10 yo says that then he wants to start on the east coast and head west instead of going in alphabetical order or by date of entrance into the union. I like the world geography studies that use a "passport" for the kids, and am wondering what is comparable for a US study for Americans? Postcards maybe?
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Angela
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Three Plus Two
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CrunchyMom
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I happened to see this coloring book when browsing the Dover warehouse sale. Maybe it would be a better good fit for non-scrapbooking boys?
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Lindsay
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MaryM
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Here are a couple of the old threads about books to go along with the states. Not sure if this includes the one you were remembering.
One living book per state!
Living books rec. for U.S. regions?
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Mary M. in Denver
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JennGM
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I think Melinda (Seastar) did this last year, although I'm not finding the thread.
Sleeping Bear books --I can only handle a few. They aren't "living" to me. Initially the images draw in my boys, but there is too much text, and the format is so identical and repetitive not in a good way.
Our library doesn't carry most of the titles and they also tend to be expensive.
This is a fun idea. You might have to find books that aren't outright about the state, just a highlight a person, history, or culture of interest.
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Jennifer G. Miller
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MaryM
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Oh and here is another thread that was compiled specifically for the purpose of bringing together all the old threads related to geography and studying the states.
Studying the States(US) Resources & Ideas
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Mary M. in Denver
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JennGM
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Oops, Mary beat me. Her first link is Melinda's I was mentioning.
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Jennifer G. Miller
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pumpkinmom
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I had planned to use the new CHC State Study book this year but it has been put aside until next year. I like that it's one book! It's not a wonderful living book but it's not bad (haven't seen anything better). I wouldn't get the workbook unless you have someone who enjoys filling-in-the-blank. There is a post out there that reviews this book a little more I think from this spring.
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Angel
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Yes, Mary, thank you for those links! I'm trying to keep the study using mostly picture books for my boys, but my 9th grade dd is also doing geography this year and some of the upper level books from the threads you linked might be good for her.
I printed off a big US Megamap for our wall yesterday; I think we'll color each state as we read about it. I think I'm going to include some picture books for animals or resources from each state as well because "animals" seems to be one of our big themes this year. I think I'm going to type up my own booklet of activities for each state, too, starting with an overview of the US. We'll see how this goes, though; it might be a little too ambitious.
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Angela
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roomintheheart
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We are using CHC's state study. I am loving it and highly recommend the workbook, too. It has a lot of ideas for fun activities to go along with most of the states.
The workbook is not just a fill in the blank book, though they do have some fill in the blank and multiple choice pages. For example, yesterday my daughter had to draw a map of New England, then draw in symbols of the main natural and manufactured resources for each state. Then she made a chart of the climate and geographical features for each state. Then she used critical thinking to write two sentences explaining how the climate, geography, and natural resources work together to form the economy of the state.
The workbook also teaches study skills, which I am loving.
Anyway, I thought I'd recommend it.
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MaryM
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Angel wrote:
| Yes, Mary, thank you for those links! I'm trying to keep the study using mostly picture books for my boys, |
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So if you are looking more for picture books, this thread might be helpful. It doesn't include all the states but is filling in missing states from a list Cay was compiling.
State by State
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Mary M. in Denver
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JodieLyn
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We just found a game for the Kindle (maybe other tablets and such too) called Stack the States.. very fun.. the kids are all hooked on it.. and it's all about state names and shapes and capitals and such.. while it's not more in depth in each state.. it's a fun way to learn the states.
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Amber-v
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I'm not a big fan of the Sleeping Bear state books either. I tried a few different things in trying to put together a state by state study, and one thing that is working particularly well is a selection of books I bought back in the spring. I decided to build a small library of books that talk about different aspects of all 50 states so my daughter could look up each state as we study it. I was able to get them all used on Amazon and ABEbooks (try bookfinder.com) and I think I spent less than $40 in all. Much cheaper and more interesting than the Sleeping Bear books, and a lot easier than trying to work with my small local library!
The titles I purchased are:
Our 50 States: A Family Adventure Across America
Wish You Were Here: Emily's Guide to the 50 States
To the Top: Reaching for America's 50 State Summits
Our Fifty States (National Geographic)
Greetings from the 50 States: How They Got Their Names
Flags of the Fifty States: Their Colorful Histories and Significance
The United States Cookbook: Fabulous Foods and Fascinating Facts from All 50 States
The United Sates of America: A State-by-State Guide
Each state we study takes about 3-4 weeks, at about 45 min per week. We'll spend a week or two with the books and coloring the flag, flower bird and map, a week filling out some basic standardized info on a document, and a week assembling the scrapbook page (we just use 8.5x11" colored cardstock in sheet protectors in a 3 ring binder - I'm too cheap for scrapbooking supplies  ) and cooking the dish for the state if it looks doable/appealing. Ever since we switched over to this set of books and format my daughter has been a lot more interested and engaged with the study!
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Amber
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4Real Forums : Across Time and Place
Topic: Reading the fifty states/state study
