Last week, my oldest son came home a little mopey after school. I asked him why the long face. He was upset because he was going to have to spend his Spring Break learning all the states and capitals for a test they would have when they got back to school. Flash backs started immediately! I remember fifth grade and we HAD to learn all the state and capitals too! I got a little giddy actually. I LOVE geography! I am not an expert in it by any means, but I love me a map! I can't read a road map to safe my life, but ask me about the states and I am down! It was time for me to turn my son's frown upside down! I immediately went to work on creating VISUAL flash cards for him. Here is what I LOVE about these flash cards: The FRONT side has a map of the United States with one state highlighted. This allows for kids to visualize and see where the state is located on a map. When my son saw this he said, "This is awesome! It will make labeling my map so much easier." The BACK side of each flash card has the state name, capital, and an enlarged picture of each state. This feature helps them to learn the spellings and match correct states and capitals together. My son took these cards to school to start studying and his friends went crazy for them! Now your students can too! To make learning about the states a bit more interesting and interactive, I also included travel brochure templates for students to gather more specific information about each of the states. Writing the traditional state report is important for establishing research and writing skills. But these travel brochure are a fun way for them to gather their information AND they look awesome on display. There are sections in each brochure for students to write about the state bird, flower, flag, interesting facts, places to visit, and what the state is best known for. Each of theses sections has a space to draw a picture or add pictures from the internet. Maps of each state are included on the front of each brochure or students can use a the blank template and draw their own map. This Fifty Nifty States packet is all you need to get your kids excited to learn about the 50 States! Enjoy! {DON'T FORGET IT! PIN IT!}