Tip Tuesday: From Sea to Shining Sea

Looking for a cheap, quick, easy, and fun way to teach your kids something new?  Invest in a US map-small enough to place on the table, but large enough to see the states clearly.  (These are actually place mats that I purchased for a dollar or two at Wal-Mart).  Once you have that, all you'll need are a few minutes each day (or even just a few times a week) and one of your kids' favorite snacks.  We usually use cereal, such as Froot Loops or Lucky Charms.

To begin, select two or three states to start reviewing with your child.  We started with Washington, Oregon, and California.  The western states are bigger and easier to identify (at least, to me they are).  On the first day, Baby Doll and I just pointed out those three states and said their names.  On day two, I covered the names of those three states with a Froot Loop.  If she could name the state, she got to eat the Froot Loop.  It took her no time to master those three states, so we added another.  Each day or two we add another state.  It only takes a few minutes each morning to go over these and after only a couple of months Baby Doll can identify and name about 20 states.  Bitty wanted to get in on the fun too, so I've gotten her a map of her own.  She can now identify and name 9 states.  Dipper just watches us...and eats Froot Loops :)

We, of course, spend a few minutes working on this each morning during schooling, but obviously, you don't HAVE to homeschool to incorporate this fun and educational activity into your routine.  If you choose to use place mats and cereal, breakfast might be a good time to work on this activity each day.  I hope you have as much fun and success with this as we've had.