📖

What Is a State?

Our State and Country

Day 96of 180
Week 20of 36
25Minutes
← Day 95Day 96 of 180Day 97
🖨️ Download Worksheet (PDF)

Learning Objectives

1

Understand what a state is

2

Learn that states are part of a larger country

3

Begin to recognize our own state's importance

Proverbs 22:3

A prudent man sees danger and hides himself; but the simple pass on, and suffer for it.

Proverbs 22:3 (WEB)

Just as we learn about our state to understand our home, we learn about God's world to understand His love

📦 Materials Needed

  • US map
  • Colored pencils
  • Blank paper
  • Stickers (optional)

Lesson Plan

1Opening (5 min)

Gather children and show them a US map. Ask them where they live and explain that we live in a special place called a state.

💭 Review Question: Who can tell me the name of our state?
2Teaching (10 min)

Explain that a state is a part of the United States, like a big family of different areas. Each state has its own special features, people, and stories.

📌 Key Talking Points:
  • States are like rooms in a big house called America
  • Each state has its own shape and special things
  • We belong to our state and our country
💬 Discussion Questions:
  • What makes our state special?
  • Can you name something unique about where we live?
3Activity: State Sticker Map (7 min)
hands-on

Create a simple map showing our state, using stickers or drawings to mark special places

📝 Instructions:
  1. Give each child a piece of paper
  2. Help them draw a simple outline of their state
  3. Let them decorate with stickers or drawings
  4. Talk about what makes their state special
🔄 Variations:

Simpler: Provide a pre-drawn state outline

Challenge: Add capital city and neighboring states

4Closing (3 min)

Recap what we learned about states and our special place in America

📝 Review Questions:
  • What is a state?
  • Are states part of something bigger?
  • What makes our state special?
🙏 Prayer:

Dear God, thank You for creating such a beautiful country and giving us a special place to call home. Amen.

Coming up: Tomorrow we will look at where our state is on a big map of the United States!

Psalm 33:12

Blessed is the nation whose God is Yahweh, the people he has chosen for his own inheritance.

Psalm 33:12 (WEB)

🎯 Activity: Create a hand motion for each word of the verse

Teaching Notes

📚 Background:

First graders are beginning to understand geographic concepts and their place in a larger community.

💡 Teaching Tips:
  • Use simple, concrete language
  • Make connections to familiar places
  • Encourage curiosity about geography
🤔 Common Struggles:

Children might confuse city, state, and country

👀 Signs of Understanding:

Understanding that they belong to a state within a larger country

Extension Activities

  • Create a state fact book
  • Collect postcards from different states
  • Learn state bird or flower

Ready for Tomorrow?

Great job completing today's lesson!

Continue to Day 97Back to History & Social Studies