These US states and capitals flash cards help 3rd to 5th grade students learn all 50 capitals, with a locator map on every card. Answer key included.
These sports flash cards help PreK to 3rd Grade students name 18 sports from pictures of their gear, with an answer key included, to grow everyday vocabulary.
These US states black and white flash cards help 1st to 5th grade students name all 50 states by their shapes, with easy fold-over cards and an answer key included.
This barn cut out activity lets PreK to 3rd grade children color, cut, fold and glue a 3-D paper barn, roof and silo, then stand six farm animals beside it.
US states and capitals state shape flash cards for 3rd to 6th grade: 50 fold-over cards with a state outline on the front and its name and capital inside. Answer key included.
This compare and contrast across cultures activity helps 2nd-4th grade readers sort story details from two folk tales onto a Venn diagram. Answer key included.
In this position words activity, preschool to 1st grade children match butterfly pictures to above, below, next to, in front of, and behind. Answer key included.
This dear valentine activity has K-2nd grade students pick heart word cards for family and school helpers and spell each word on a Valentine card. Answer key included.
Kids color and cut big arrows, build a My Day timeline book, and make a toy car path in this arrow cut outs activity for preschool to 3rd grade.
These US states color flash cards help 1st to 5th Grade students learn all 50 state shapes and regions, with an answer key included.
UsingGuess Who Matching Game Activity, students take turns asking questions to figure out their partner's mystery person.
This don't wake the librarian sorting books by genre activity is a quiet board game where 1st to 3rd grade readers sort fiction, nonfiction and poetry books. Answer key included.
Using Feeling Words Activity, students read Amy Goes to First Grade to find words and phrases that describe Amy's feelings on the first day of school.
This treasure hunt directions activity board game helps K-2nd grade students follow spoken and written directions as they race to Treasure Island. Answer key included.
This take note writing activity has 3rd to 5th grade students sort print and digital sources, research a state with question cards, and take notes in their own words. Answer key included.
These US states and capitals picture flash cards help 3rd to 5th grade students name each state from its shape and capital city. Fold-over cards, practice page and answer key included.
These famous painters flash cards help K-5th Grade students match twelve artists to paintings in their style, with an answer key included, so kids grow a real eye for art.
Partners spin, ask and color in this get to know your super classmates back to school activity for 1st to 3rd grade, with 20 interview cards that build friendships.
This Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader Activity is a fun way for students to review key concepts in Math, Reading, Science, and Social Studies!
Maps, community and the world around us
Social studies starts close to home and keeps zooming out. Kindergartners and 1st graders learn about themselves, their families, community helpers, rules and being a good citizen. In 2nd and 3rd grade, kids read maps with a compass rose, compare communities, learn about goods and services, and label the continents and oceans. Upper elementary brings state history, US regions, latitude and longitude, the three branches of government and early American history. The click moment is when kids see that every map, law and story is about real people, including them!
Social studies sticks when kids can see it, sing it and connect it to their own lives. Here's what works in our rooms.
Give each child a blank map and have them label and color the continents, saying each name out loud as they go. Then flip the page over and see how many they can place from memory. Repeat it a few times across the month and watch the blanks fill in.
Why it works: children learn more from words and pictures together than from words alone (Mayer, 2009).
Try it withLabeling Continents WorksheetWorksheetsOpen it →The 50 States Song makes a long list feel short. Play it every morning for two weeks and pause it now and then so kids can call out the next state. Then point to each state on a US map as you sing.
Why it works: words set to a repeating melody are easier to recall than the same words spoken (Wallace, 1994).
Try it with50 States SongSongsOpen it →Flash a state card and kids race to name its capital. Start with your home state and its neighbors, then add a region each week. Short daily rounds beat one big memorizing night.
Why it works: researchers who compared ten study methods found practice testing is one of the two that work best (Dunlosky and colleagues, 2013).
Try it withUS States and Capitals Flash CardsActivitiesOpen it →Kids love to explore. These ideas get them moving and talking.
WorksheetsHide a treasure in the room and give directions like three steps north, two steps east. First explorer to find it wins!
Open Compass Rose Worksheet →
WorksheetsKids interview a grown-up about their family, then fill in their own tree and share one surprising fact.
Open 1 Child Family Tree Worksheet →
WorksheetsSplit the class into lawmakers, a president and judges. Pass a silly class law, sign it and decide if it's fair.
Open Three Branches of Government Worksheet →Teacher favorites right now: US States and Capitals Flash Cards, Sports Flash Cards and US States Black and White Flash Cards.
Elementary social studies covers family and community, citizenship, maps and geography, economics like goods and services, government, and history. It starts with the child's own world and expands to their state, country and the world.
Kindergartners learn about themselves, their families, community helpers, rules and being a good friend and citizen. They also start talking about holidays, needs and wants, and simple maps of places they know.
Start with a map of something familiar, like your classroom or bedroom. Then add a compass rose, a key and directions. Once kids can find things on a map of their own space, move to town, state and world maps.
Many kids learn the states and capitals in 4th or 5th grade, often alongside US regions and history. A song and a little daily practice make it much easier.
Yes! Every social studies worksheet prints as a PDF, from blank maps to family trees, and many have matching songs, videos and flash cards.
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