Welcome to the Eight For Each State US Geography tour. I am so glad you are joining us.
Georgia, Queen of the South, is the next step on our US Geography tour! We had so much fun with Georgia ya’all! When my husband and I were first married we lived close to Savannah, Georgia. If you have never been there, put it on your list.
It is so beautiful and interesting that we try to take the kids every year to visit friends who still live there. It is no surprise then that I was excited for all the things we could learn and do while studying Georgia!
1. P is for Peach by Carol Crane
Georgia is the first state we have used a book from the State by State Alphabet series. It is fantastic! I love the little rhyming couplets and the extra optional information out to the side. Each book has a different writer and illustrator so they never get old.
Check out the teachers guides that go with each book! They are free by Sleeping Bear Press.
2. YouTube Video on Georgia
We watched the same series for Delaware and it was a great introduction to the state! The Georgia video is great too. Plenty of good informational hooks to hang other parts of our study on.
3. Georgia Fact Books
Georgia Facts and Symbols by Emily McAuliffe – We found this new series starting with Georgia that really helped us with Sarah Joan’s notebooking pages. I liked the single page introduction to the state bird, state flower, flag and other important symbols. Just the right size and just the right amount of information.
I read the page in the book while Sarah Joan colored the picture on her notebooking page. Then, she told me three things she remembered about the flower or bird. Sometimes she would want to write and other times she asked me to write the facts she wanted to remember.
Hello U.S.A. Georgia by Rita Ladoux – It is really very helpful to have a set of non fiction books for US Geography. While I try to keep most of our study in the living book department, facts are facts. Non fiction books can be a great place to start as you look for living books for each state.
The Georgia Colony by Kevin Cunningham – Ruth wanted a bit more history than either of the above books would give her. So, we found this book that told about Georgia’s beginnings and involvement in the Revolutionary War.
4. Cabbage Patch Kids
We learned in P is for Peach that Cabbage Patch Kids are made in Georgia! In Cleveland, Georgia, you can visit Babyland General Hospital where the Cabbage Patch Dolls are removed from the patch and given new homes. What a hoot!
We watched one being born. Then we watched one at the nursing station getting all ready for its new mommy. I don’t need to tell you my girls put this on our list of places to visit!
For fun, I pulled out my Cabbage Patch doll. She has been… loved. It is amazing how things change without you noticing. The girls exclaimed how funny it was that my doll actually had yarn for hair. Oh’ my.
5. Biscuits and Honey
Biscuits are a southern staple. The bee is Georgia’s state insect. What could be more perfect that biscuits and honey for your Georgia state food? We love the Biscuits Supreme recipe from Better Homes and Gardens.
6. Etowah Indian Earth Mounds
We learned about the Indian tribes in Georgia that built earth mounds and then made our own earth mound! Learn more about this project from Catholic Missionary Family.
Check out this article about modern archaeology reconstructing a map of the ancient city around the Etowah Indian mounds without digging one hole! If you have an older child along for your US Geography tour this is a great topic for them.
7. And the Tide Comes In by Merryl Alber
Georgia is an exciting topographical state. They have mountains, valleys, rivers, swamps, shore lines with islands, and salt marshes. And the Tide Comes In focuses on Georgia Salt Marshes.
A girl from Colorado visits her cousin on the Georgia coast. Each day the girls go out and explore the salt marsh. Each day is a bit different because of the tides. A salt marsh has a ton of exciting animals and plants that live no where else! I love the way this book features each one with extra information off to the side. If my girls were interested they’d ask me to read the extra. If not, we moved on and they had still learned plenty with just the story.
Ruth loved this book so much she decided to do a special project with it. She built her own salt marsh model. She is excited to put together a presentation for co op with her model and the facts she has learned. All on her own folks. I guess this will never stop surprising me.
Here are some links to some animal outlines I printed for her to cut out, color and glue to her project.
- Salt Marsh activity book from Louisiana – The same animals are featured, print the pages that you need.
- Florida ABC coloring book – A really nice ABC book with two animals per letter! It says Florida, but these animals live in Georgia as well.
- Booklet from the Wetlands Institute – The most useful page for our purposes. Check out pages 7-10 for the best animal printables.
8. Other Books for Your US Geography tour
Every once and a while on our US Geography tour, I will share with you resources that I have found along the way that are useful for all 50 states. This time, I would like to share with you some of the books I have found.
- Little State Board Books for Everyone
– These rhyming riddle board books for each state are meant naturally for the preschool crowd, but I found them to be delightful to me! I am sure that older children would also enjoy them. (Not every state has one.) - The Little Man In the Map: With Clues To Remember All 50 States by E. Andrew Martonyi – Another rhyming book for older children. Find the shapes to help you remember the location of all 50 states! There is a state capital version and also a wall map.
- 101 Wacky State Jokes by Melvin Berger – Because we all need a little funny. This book was one I had as a kid and pulled out the other day and left lying around. Ruth naturally picked it up and began laughing hysterically. Mission accomplished.
– These rhyming riddle board books for each state are meant naturally for the preschool crowd, but I found them to be delightful to me! I am sure that older children would also enjoy them. (Not every state has one.)
P is for Peach: A Georgia Alphabet (Alphabet Series)Georgia Facts and Symbols
Georgia (Hello U.S.A.)
The Georgia Colony
And the Tide Comes In
The Little Man In the Map
The Little Man In the Map Teaches the State Capitals!
The Little Man In the Map – Wall Map
101 Wacky State Jokes
What US Geography books are your favorite?
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