We are back at our favorite site for learning about the States and Capitals! Washington DC is tourist central and a quick stroll along the National Mall will bring you face to face with important and moving memorials as well as a variety of license plates on cars parked along the borders.

We print off a map with each state listed (see below) and mark each state off that we find with a highlighter. The goal, of course, is to highlight the entire map. You can play this game during road trips, of course, but we like to do it while visiting historical sites. It’s great to see that people from all over our country congregate around the sites important to our history and our country.

As a bonus, we like to imagine what the people are like who come to visit our nation’s capital. We look at a minivan and imagine a family from Oregon visiting and marveling not just at the sites, but at the heavy heat and humidity pressing down on us in August. We wonder if the pickup truck from Ohio brought a farmer curious to visit the American history museum and look at the old farm equipment. It is stereotyping, of course, but a good way to learn about the different states. We carry our state and capital flashcards that we buy on Amazon to learn a little about each state and to help us think about the people who live there. We talk about these points when thinking about each state:

1. What is the geography like in each state?
2. How does the geography affect the way people live (entertainment options, livelihoods, transportation options, etc.)
3. What are some of the notable historical events from the state?
4. Who are some famous people from this state?
5. What are some tourist sites in the state and what would we visit first given the chance?

There are many ways to weave conversations about the geography of our country into our learning. Being a tourist and visiting touristy spots are wonderful jumping off points for these discussions.