Comments on: My Case Against Learning State Capitals http://fivejs.com/my-case-against-learning-states-and-capitals/ Homeschool and Educational Resources to Help Parents Raise Lifelong Learners Fri, 10 Feb 2012 19:44:29 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Stevehttp://fivejs.com/my-case-against-learning-states-and-capitals/comment-page-1/#comment-7469 Steve Sun, 19 Jun 2011 09:09:35 +0000 http://fivejs.com/?p=3753#comment-7469 Hi, great post, I also found I great site with some geography games where you can learn capitals, flags, it has some interesting quizzes about famous towns... very interesting site, i would recommend to anyone to try it. Here is the link: http://geographygames24.com/ Hi, great post, I also found I great site with some geography games where you can learn capitals, flags, it has some interesting quizzes about famous towns… very interesting site, i would recommend to anyone to try it. Here is the link: http://geographygames24.com/

]]> By: Pathfinder Momhttp://fivejs.com/my-case-against-learning-states-and-capitals/comment-page-1/#comment-6010 Pathfinder Mom Mon, 03 Jan 2011 00:45:45 +0000 http://fivejs.com/?p=3753#comment-6010 We learned the state capitals as a by-product of playing with the Melissa and Doug license plate game. The board has license plates for each state mounted on it. They're attached to the board and you flip them over when you see the license plate in your travels. On the reverse side is the state name and capital city. We had so much fun finding them and learned a lot about geography by playing the game. My son now knows where each state is located (except for Alaska since it's in the wrong place!), it's capital and usually something about it based on what the license plate looks like. We also came across several Canadian provinces in our travels, so we learned about them as well. We learned the state capitals as a by-product of playing with the Melissa and Doug license plate game. The board has license plates for each state mounted on it. They're attached to the board and you flip them over when you see the license plate in your travels. On the reverse side is the state name and capital city. We had so much fun finding them and learned a lot about geography by playing the game. My son now knows where each state is located (except for Alaska since it's in the wrong place!), it's capital and usually something about it based on what the license plate looks like. We also came across several Canadian provinces in our travels, so we learned about them as well.

]]> By: Grace @ Sandier Pastureshttp://fivejs.com/my-case-against-learning-states-and-capitals/comment-page-1/#comment-4707 Grace @ Sandier Pastures Sun, 21 Nov 2010 05:22:09 +0000 http://fivejs.com/?p=3753#comment-4707 Hi Joy, I am not from the US but I'm fascinated by it. I started memorizing the States and their capitals when I was 9 and perfected it before summer vacation was over. My friends would laugh at me and my pointless efforts but I still enjoyed studying about the US and geography in general. This is a great post! I am teaching geography to my almost 7 year old with a big world map on our wall at home. Hi Joy, I am not from the US but I'm fascinated by it. I started memorizing the States and their capitals when I was 9 and perfected it before summer vacation was over. My friends would laugh at me and my pointless efforts but I still enjoyed studying about the US and geography in general.

This is a great post! I am teaching geography to my almost 7 year old with a big world map on our wall at home.

]]> By: Interactive Tutorial for Learning the U.S. Postal Abbreviationshttp://fivejs.com/my-case-against-learning-states-and-capitals/comment-page-1/#comment-4685 Interactive Tutorial for Learning the U.S. Postal Abbreviations Fri, 19 Nov 2010 15:15:52 +0000 http://fivejs.com/?p=3753#comment-4685 [...] I have this thing about postal abbreviations. For some strange reason I think that having children learn them is useful — much more useful than learning the state capitals. [...] [...] I have this thing about postal abbreviations. For some strange reason I think that having children learn them is useful — much more useful than learning the state capitals. [...]

]]> By: Free Ebook: Learn the States and Postal Abbreviationshttp://fivejs.com/my-case-against-learning-states-and-capitals/comment-page-1/#comment-4594 Free Ebook: Learn the States and Postal Abbreviations Sun, 14 Nov 2010 22:11:19 +0000 http://fivejs.com/?p=3753#comment-4594 [...] Several months ago I decided to take matters into my own hands and write a curriculum unit to help teach my children the postal abbreviations and the locations of the states. And I'd like to make it available as a free download to my readers for their own use. Learn the States and Postal Abbreviations This 29-page ebook includes everything you need to teach your children the states and postal abbreviations — lesson plans, worksheets, flashcards, printable maps, and more. Written to be used with children of any age, this ebook will equip your children with information much more useful than learning just the states and capitals. [...] [...] Several months ago I decided to take matters into my own hands and write a curriculum unit to help teach my children the postal abbreviations and the locations of the states. And I'd like to make it available as a free download to my readers for their own use. Learn the States and Postal Abbreviations This 29-page ebook includes everything you need to teach your children the states and postal abbreviations — lesson plans, worksheets, flashcards, printable maps, and more. Written to be used with children of any age, this ebook will equip your children with information much more useful than learning just the states and capitals. [...]

]]> By: Meryl van der Merwehttp://fivejs.com/my-case-against-learning-states-and-capitals/comment-page-1/#comment-3034 Meryl van der Merwe Tue, 06 Apr 2010 15:02:15 +0000 http://fivejs.com/?p=3753#comment-3034 Rote learning of facts is what kills enjoyment of a subject. The same applies to history. My kids love history - because we focus on the 'story' not the dates. I just get them to learn about 10 key dates by the time they graduate so they can put events into historical context. My mom could never understand how we all loved history so much as to her history is synonymous with dates and dry facts - until she spent some time with us and listened in on the books we read. Learning really can be very enjoyable - if it is approached the right way. .-= Meryl van der Merwe´s last blog ..<a href="http://www.squidoo.com/teach-geography" rel="nofollow">So - you want to Teach your Kids Geography? updated Tue Mar 30 2010 8:24 pm CDT</a> =-. Rote learning of facts is what kills enjoyment of a subject. The same applies to history. My kids love history – because we focus on the 'story' not the dates. I just get them to learn about 10 key dates by the time they graduate so they can put events into historical context. My mom could never understand how we all loved history so much as to her history is synonymous with dates and dry facts – until she spent some time with us and listened in on the books we read. Learning really can be very enjoyable – if it is approached the right way.
.-= Meryl van der Merwe´s last blog ..So – you want to Teach your Kids Geography? updated Tue Mar 30 2010 8:24 pm CDT =-.

]]> By: Joyhttp://fivejs.com/my-case-against-learning-states-and-capitals/comment-page-1/#comment-2487 Joy Mon, 21 Dec 2009 20:46:24 +0000 http://fivejs.com/?p=3753#comment-2487 <a href="#comment-2486" rel="nofollow">@Mugglemama</a>, That sounds like you have a fantastic system going for you. I hope to get back into geography a bit more this next term. I love your approach; it's right up my alley! @Mugglemama, That sounds like you have a fantastic system going for you. I hope to get back into geography a bit more this next term. I love your approach; it's right up my alley!

]]> By: Mugglemamahttp://fivejs.com/my-case-against-learning-states-and-capitals/comment-page-1/#comment-2486 Mugglemama Mon, 21 Dec 2009 20:41:06 +0000 http://fivejs.com/?p=3753#comment-2486 I couldn't agree with you more! I taught my kids to identify, spell, and label all of the U.S. states when they were in 2nd and 5th grades. After that, I taught them to do the same with all of the countries of Central America, South America, and Europe. This year (they are now in 3rd and 6th grades), we will learn the countries of Africa and Asia, and my youngest who just turned 5 is starting on the U.S. states (we'll only cover about 12 of them this year unless he wants to do more, and he already knows 8 of them). The two older kids and I are also doing state capitals right now, but I really have no idea why, except that as you said, it was a staple of our educations when we were young. We happen to live in a capital city and have visited the state capital a few times, so they understand that is where our state's governmental stuff occurs, but other than that, I can't think of a reason anyone needs to know the state capitals either, LOL! It seems MUCH more important to me that they are familiar with where various countries are, and where they themselves are geographically in relation to the rest of the world. We do a unit study (including photos, travel channel episodes, youtube videos, music samples, etc.) of each country and/or continent as we learn the maps, as well. I want them to get visuals in their minds when they hear the name of a certain country or continent, and truly have some concrete knowledge of the region. I seriously cannot think of one thing I ever used my knowledge of the states and capitals for. Oh well, we're learning them anyway. The kids are having fun with it and we'll have them all covered in less than 3 weeks, only requiring about 10 minutes per day. If they hated it, or if it was going to require much more time than it does now, I probably wouldn't bother with it, since I can think of no situation later in life in which they'll need to know them. I couldn't agree with you more! I taught my kids to identify, spell, and label all of the U.S. states when they were in 2nd and 5th grades. After that, I taught them to do the same with all of the countries of Central America, South America, and Europe. This year (they are now in 3rd and 6th grades), we will learn the countries of Africa and Asia, and my youngest who just turned 5 is starting on the U.S. states (we'll only cover about 12 of them this year unless he wants to do more, and he already knows 8 of them). The two older kids and I are also doing state capitals right now, but I really have no idea why, except that as you said, it was a staple of our educations when we were young. We happen to live in a capital city and have visited the state capital a few times, so they understand that is where our state's governmental stuff occurs, but other than that, I can't think of a reason anyone needs to know the state capitals either, LOL! It seems MUCH more important to me that they are familiar with where various countries are, and where they themselves are geographically in relation to the rest of the world. We do a unit study (including photos, travel channel episodes, youtube videos, music samples, etc.) of each country and/or continent as we learn the maps, as well. I want them to get visuals in their minds when they hear the name of a certain country or continent, and truly have some concrete knowledge of the region.

I seriously cannot think of one thing I ever used my knowledge of the states and capitals for. Oh well, we're learning them anyway. The kids are having fun with it and we'll have them all covered in less than 3 weeks, only requiring about 10 minutes per day. If they hated it, or if it was going to require much more time than it does now, I probably wouldn't bother with it, since I can think of no situation later in life in which they'll need to know them.

]]> By: Mikkihttp://fivejs.com/my-case-against-learning-states-and-capitals/comment-page-1/#comment-2297 Mikki Sun, 15 Nov 2009 04:54:00 +0000 http://fivejs.com/?p=3753#comment-2297 In the classical method of education, rote memory work is a fairly large part of early education. One reason has to do with the physical activity of memory work. It actually builds new neural pathways, and a skill that allows quicker memory work later in life. It is like building muscle and reaction times through physical activities. The second reason for memorizing facts at a young age is to build a framework for future learning. Our Classical Conversations co-op includes a lot of memory work for the elementary grades. They learn one history sentence/song each week, and 8 points on a timeline (from creation to modern America.) Veritas Press cards are the backbone of this. After doing this for two years, my 13 year old has a really strong framework for understanding history - as he now begins to work more on the reasons behind events in history. Ex. He knows who crowned Charlemagne, is familiar with many Popes, and figures in the Reformation, and knew what year Nelson Mandela came to leadership in South Africa. (He was able to tell me this when we were watching a special on PBS.) It is a little like the study of mathematics. In the beginning, you need the memorization of addition, subtraction, and multiplication facts. This builds the framework for future growth in logic and higher math classes. You can't progress unless the basics are covered. "The Brain that Changes Itself" by Norman Doidge includes fascinating life stories about people who have worked through learning challenges through a variety of "brain exercises." It is NOT talking about any particular method, but many many personal breakthroughs that are amazing! By the way, in geography this year, they are drawing their way around the world. Each week they draw four review maps, and 4 new maps of a different region in the world, with names and capitals. They focus on one new region for two weeks. He will understand the world news far better than 90 percent of most Americans, just because he actually knows where to find the countries that they are talking about. (Once again, building a framework.) The junior high and high school years still add more facts, but work with the natural "why" and "prove it" tendencies for children in those years. With a solid foundation built on a wider knowledge base, they can really wrestle with why things happened in the past, or present. My 13 year old is learning to search for answers and reasons in many locations now. The internet is a great resource, but if you have a stronger library of facts in your own brain, your search time can be defined more closely and shortened considerably. Sorry for the long winded explanation, but we love what we have been seeing these last three years. DS1 has more discussion questions than I could dream of answering at this point in time. It is exiting to see how he is growing. BTW - both of my children LOVE the www.sheppardsoftware.com geography games. In the classical method of education, rote memory work is a fairly large part of early education. One reason has to do with the physical activity of memory work. It actually builds new neural pathways, and a skill that allows quicker memory work later in life. It is like building muscle and reaction times through physical activities.

The second reason for memorizing facts at a young age is to build a framework for future learning. Our Classical Conversations co-op includes a lot of memory work for the elementary grades. They learn one history sentence/song each week, and 8 points on a timeline (from creation to modern America.) Veritas Press cards are the backbone of this. After doing this for two years, my 13 year old has a really strong framework for understanding history – as he now begins to work more on the reasons behind events in history. Ex. He knows who crowned Charlemagne, is familiar with many Popes, and figures in the Reformation, and knew what year Nelson Mandela came to leadership in South Africa. (He was able to tell me this when we were watching a special on PBS.)

It is a little like the study of mathematics. In the beginning, you need the memorization of addition, subtraction, and multiplication facts. This builds the framework for future growth in logic and higher math classes. You can't progress unless the basics are covered.

"The Brain that Changes Itself" by Norman Doidge includes fascinating life stories about people who have worked through learning challenges through a variety of "brain exercises." It is NOT talking about any particular method, but many many personal breakthroughs that are amazing!

By the way, in geography this year, they are drawing their way around the world. Each week they draw four review maps, and 4 new maps of a different region in the world, with names and capitals. They focus on one new region for two weeks. He will understand the world news far better than 90 percent of most Americans, just because he actually knows where to find the countries that they are talking about. (Once again, building a framework.)

The junior high and high school years still add more facts, but work with the natural "why" and "prove it" tendencies for children in those years. With a solid foundation built on a wider knowledge base, they can really wrestle with why things happened in the past, or present. My 13 year old is learning to search for answers and reasons in many locations now. The internet is a great resource, but if you have a stronger library of facts in your own brain, your search time can be defined more closely and shortened considerably.

Sorry for the long winded explanation, but we love what we have been seeing these last three years. DS1 has more discussion questions than I could dream of answering at this point in time. It is exiting to see how he is growing.

BTW – both of my children LOVE the http://www.sheppardsoftware.com geography games.

]]> By: Meanwhile, back at the ranch… » Blog Archive » Spanish Test Today!http://fivejs.com/my-case-against-learning-states-and-capitals/comment-page-1/#comment-2296 Meanwhile, back at the ranch… » Blog Archive » Spanish Test Today! Mon, 09 Nov 2009 03:33:45 +0000 http://fivejs.com/?p=3753#comment-2296 [...] Here’s your link back to Thirsty Thursday. [...] [...] Here's your link back to Thirsty Thursday. [...]

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