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Each UNIT STUDY includes suggestions of books to READ, ideas to WRITE, crafts to CREATE, more to EXPLORE, snacks to ENJOY and other ways to LEARN about a specific topic! To read more about the concepts behind my UNIT STUDIES, read this.
If you find it handy to have a simplified printable of these suggestions, you can find one, along with several free printables, here in the FREE Florida Unit Study Printable Pack.
Otherwise, read on for a more detailed version with links embedded!
{Note: The links are pink! Just think, “pink link” if you are wanting to follow a link to something.}
UNIT STUDY: FLORIDA
If I had to choose a state from each coast that shouts SUMMER, CALIFORNIA would be one and FLORIDA would be the other. They have a lot of similarities {good weather, Disney, miles and miles of beaches} but they also have some vast differences! Check out this FLORIDA UNIT STUDY to learn a wee bit more about The Sunshine State!
READ: S is for Sunshine by Michael Glenn Monroe is a perfect book to start a UNIT STUDY about FLORIDA. Part of the Discover America State by State series of books, it is presented in a fun rhyme that follows each letter of the alphabet in order. But, it also includes a decent chunk of info that elaborates on each of the 26 topics. It’s both educational and fun and sets a great tone for learning about the Sunshine State. And, there is a one-page Scavenger Hunt that you can print from the FREE Florida Unit Study Printable Pack.
Celebrating Florida by Marion Dane Bauer is part of a series of fairly easy readers that offers loads of great information about FLORIDA. It includes information about the state’s Native American past and present, many agricultural contributions, space industry, and more. It also offers a great map in the front and a small glossary, suggested activities, important dates and fast facts in the back. It’s truly a great pick for an introduction to FLORIDA for kids on the higher end of being beginner readers. Plus, it’s very inexpensive and there are a couple of mini Book Companion Pack pages in the FREE Florida Unit Study Printable Pack.
The Twelve Days of Christmas in Florida by Frank Remkiewicz is a fun book that offers multiple levels of learning all based around Luann’s visit to her cousin in FLORIDA over Christmas. Each set of pages includes a letter that Luann writes back to her family with lots of details on the sites and scenes of FLORIDA along with a fun stanza {set to The 12 Days of Christmas} that involves fun subjects like golfing grannies and purring panthers. It’s a great book for many levels because you can opt to tackle it all or pare it down to the simpler portions. It also creates a perfect setup to teach letter-writing. You’ll find a couple of fun writing activities to accompany the book in the FREE Florida Unit Study Printable Pack.
Exploring Florida’s Geography, Culture and Climate by Joanne Mattern is a great option for late elementary-aged readers. It’s filled with loads of facts, interesting images and more. It also includes a glossary, index and captions to bump up the learning to a higher level.
Finding Florida by Wendy Conklin has the same look and feel as the book above but is all about the exploration and discovery of FLORIDA which is critical if you want your kids to understand the history of FLORIDA at all.
What’s So Great About this State: Florida by Kate B Jerome is part of a series that looks awesome! It kind of reminds me of a magazine, the way it’s laid out and presented. The pages are broken down into only four FLORIDA categories: Land, People, History and A Lot More Stuff!
WRITE: As mentioned above, The Twelve Days of Christmas in Florida by Frank Remkiewicz offers some great segues into writing activities, two of which can be found in the FREE Florida Unit Study Printable Pack and neither of which require the book!
You can also find a fun and easy writing activity based on S is for Sunshine by Michael Glenn Monroe.
My favorite idea, though, is to have kids write an actual letter to family or friends in FLORIDA! Or if y’all happen to live in FLORIDA, write to somebody out of state and tell them three things about FLORIDA.
LEARN: If you want an easy-to-use printable pack that is jam-packed with 80 pages of facts related to the state symbols of FLORIDA, check out this State of Florida Fact Pack. It includes info text, posters, practice pages and more! It covers the state bird, mammal, insect, capital, tree, flower and motto. It also includes information on FLORIDA’s borders and statehood. Use discount code 25OffFLPack and save 25% off the list price {and it’s NOT expensive to begin with!}
CREATE: I love these paper-bag alligator puppets along with so many of these other alligator ideas. This post includes 18 FLORIDA crafts including some uber-cute clothespin alligators, thumbprint palm trees, and tons of seashell crafts! And, the possibilities with this sand art are endless!
ENJOY: I think the easiest way to enjoy some FLORIDA foods, would be to make and serve an array of things made with oranges! Pancakes or toast topped with easy-to-make homemade orange jam served with orange juice on the side to start. For a mid-day snack, these candied orange slices look fun to make and yummy to eat! And after dinner, this amazing orange upside-down cake is super cool and pretty too!
EXPLORE: Unless you can take a road trip down to The Sunshine State, the next best way to explore FLORIDA would be through these video lessons. This one is from homeschool pop and is eight minutes long. Perfect for younger kiddos and elementary-aged students. This site from FLORIDA’s Department of State is a great place to go for links to loads of FLORIDA info including history, symbols, Seminoles, governors and more! And National Geographic Kids offers a great display of kid-sized info and amazing pictures! They also have a link to a short video all about the Everglades….which is definitely something you won’t find in CALIFORNIA!
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