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How to Make a Cherry Pie and See the USA

Social Studies

Geography- Map the Route
On an outline map of the United States, map the route taken to get all the necessary items to make the tools. Paste the pictures in the right places and draw arrows from place to place. You may even want to number them.  Older children might also want to make note of what states they would pass through as they travel from one location to the next.

Geography- The United States of America
Discuss the following with your student:
What is the motto of the United States of America?  (In God We Trust)

What countries or oceans border the United States? (Canada, Mexico, Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, Pacific Ocean)

How many states are there? (50)
How large is the United States in land area? (3,615,123 sq. mi. or 9,375,720 sq. km.)

Geography – United States Symbols

What are some symbols of the United States?
 

Flag:  The US flag has 13 stripes, 7 red and 6 white.  They represent the original 13 colonies.  There are also 50 white stars on a blue background, symbolizing the 50 states that make up the United States of America.  The first flag was designed in 1777.  The colors of the flag also have meaning.  The red represents bravery, the white represents purity, and the blue represents justice.

Eagle:  The bald eagle was chosen to be the national bird in 1782 by the Founding Fathers.  They chose it because they felt it symbolized strength, freedom and courage.  By the way, the word “bald” doesn’t mean that the bird has no feathers; rather, it comes from the old word “piebald” which means “marked with white”.

Liberty Bell:  The Liberty Bell is a symbol of freedom in the US; it is made mostly of copper and tin.  It was cast in London, England, in 1752.  After arriving in the US, it cracked.  It was recast using the same metal, but it cracked again.  A third bell, cast from the same metal, also cracked.  It rang when the Declaration of Independence was signed by the Continental Congress.  It was last rung on February 23, 1846 for George Washington’s birthday celebration.  The Liberty Bell now makes its home in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The inscription on the bell reads as follows:

Proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof – Lev. XXV, v. x. 

By order of the Assembly of the Province of Pensylvania [sic] for the State House in Philada.

National Anthem:  The national anthem (or song) of the United States is the Star-Spangled Banner.  It was written by Francis Scott Key in 1814 after he witnessed the shelling of Fort McHenry on September 13, 1814.  It became the national anthem in 1931.   Consider using the anthem for copywork this week.

White House:  The White House is the home of the President of the United States.  Its address is 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C.  Every President has lived there except for George Washington.  The White House had to be rebuilt and renovated after being burned by the British during the War of 1812.

Statue of Liberty:  The Statue of Liberty symbolizes freedom throughout the world.  It was a gift from the people of France and was dedicated on October 28th 1886.  It is a statue of a woman holding a torch which symbolizes liberty.  Its full name is “Liberty Enlightening the World”.

Pledge of Allegiance:  The Pledge of Allegiance is s promise of loyalty to the United States of America.  It was first published in 1892 to celebrate the 400^th anniversary of the discovery of America.  The Pledge was officially recognized by Congress on June 22, 1942; the words “under God” were added on June 14, 1954 by an act of Congress.  The United States Code (4USC4) states that when saying the Pledge of Allegiance, people must be standing at attention, facing the flag with the right hand over the heart.  Men are to remove their hats when saying the Pledge.

Pledge of Allegiance – you could use this for copywork if you haven’t done so before

For younger children, you could show pictures of different symbols and talk briefly about their significance.  For older children, have them pick one and do a little research on it to present in whatever way they choose – oral report, poster, written report, PowerPoint presentation, model, or diorama.
 

Geography – States in the United States

Many different states are mentioned in this book:
New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Louisiana, New Mexico, Washington, Hawaii, California, New Hampshire, Maine, Vermont, Texas, Florida, South Dakota, and Alaska. This would be a great time to start a state notebook (or add to it if you already have one).  HSS has resources to use as you learn about different states.

Geography- Natural Resources
Natural resources are materials found in nature that are necessary or useful to people.   Some of the natural resources found in the United States include:  coal, copper, lead, gold, iron, nickel, silver, oil, natural gas, timber.

Can your student think of some of the resources the girl gathers in the story? Let’s take a look at two of them:

Cotton- Ask your child what he/she thinks can be made from one bale of cotton (which weighs approximately 480 pounds).  Here is a partial list:

215 Jeans
249 Bed Sheets

1,217 Men's T-Shirts
1,256 Pillowcases

3,085 Diapers

313,600 $100 Bills (for more information about cotton and currency, check this out)

There is a wonderful resource called “The Story of Cotton” that you can download here (as well as other educational resources):

Oil/Coal- Two different forms of hydrocarbons, both of which are found underground. They come from a variety of plant material, which has been underground and changed by the pressure and temperature beneath the earth’s surface. The solid form is coal. The liquid form is oil.

Have your child research the different ways that coal and oil are used today.  Put together a chart or Venn diagram showing the similarities/differences in usage.

Geography- Famous Landmarks in the USA
As the girl travels from place to place, she has a chance to tour some of the most famous landmarks in the United States.

Here are some famous American landmarks:

Devil’s Tower National Monument – proclaimed to be America’s first national monument by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1906

Mount Rushmore – located in South Dakota and features the faces of four American presidents
Grand Canyon – known for its immense size: 277 river miles (446km) long, up to 18 miles (29km) wide, and a mile (1.6km) deep.

Interested in others?  Check out this website.

Take the opportunity to research one (or more) and learn the history behind the landmark.  Why is it important to our country?  Which one would your child most like to visit and why?

History- July 4th
Ask your student what the significance of July 4^th is.  (It is Independence Day, the birthday of the United States of America.)  The events surrounding our country’s separation from England ended with the Declaration of Independence (on July 4, 1776); we became our own country on this day.

Talk about what kinds of celebrations are traditional in your area.  What does your family do to celebrate July 4^th?

History- George Washington

In the story, mention is made of a rumor about George Washington’s teeth.  Does your child remember what that rumor is?  What facts does your child know about George Washington?  Read a book about Washington and take note of some new facts about his life and career.  Record the facts in the George Washington shape book.  

George Washington also has a connection to cherries!  Is your student familiar with the legend of George Washington and the cherry tree?  Read it to your student (included in George Washington minit books file) and discuss what a legend is as well as the importance of honesty. 

You can find more minit books for George Washington in our President's Day Lapbook.

Geography- Mississippi River
Find the Mississippi River on a map.  Talk about its significance in American history – as a dividing line between east and west, for transportation of goods and people.  In the story, the girl takes a ride on a riverboat down the Mississippi River.  A riverboat is a boat used for carrying passengers or freight on a river.  Talk with your child about the importance of riverboats to life along the Mississippi River in the 1800s.

Science

Manufacturing
Go back through the book and ask your child why the girl is getting each resource (Why does she get sand? -to make glass so she can make a measuring cup; Why does she get oil?  -to make plastic so she can make spoons to cook with).  Use the manufacturing minit book to reinforce what can be made from various resources.

Have your older student research to learn more about one of the processes found in the book:
~the process of mixing coal and iron to make steel and make pie pans
~the process of spinning cotton into thread and weaving into cloth and making into pot holders
~the process of carving wood into a rolling pin, sanding and sealing for use
~the process of turning oil into plastics to pour into spoon-shaped molds
~the process of cutting granite into a pastry slab
~the process of melting sand until liquid and pouring into a measuring-cup mold

What Do You Know How to Make?

Have your child think of something that he knows how to make.  Then have him write or dictate the process to make that thing.  It may be helpful to first brainstorm the different steps of the process and make sure that those steps are in the proper order to successfully complete the project.  If desired, your child may illustrate each step with his own drawings or with clipart.  Then, for fun, have someone other than your child follow your child’s directions exactly.  For example, if the directions say, “Put the peanut butter on the bread”, put the jar of peanut butter on top of the loaf of bread!  This is a great exercise to learn how to be precise in recording the steps followed while conducting a scientific experiment.

Chemistry:  States of Matter
The girl in the story has to melt the sand in order to make glass.  Melting is changing a solid into a liquid (usually by heating it).  Find some solids in your house that can be melted (chocolate, ice, wax, etc.)  Discuss solids and liquids and find examples in your house. 

Does your student know that there are only three states of matter?  Matter is something that occupies space, has mass, and makes up the observable universe.  Think of things around you that qualify as matter.   The three states of matter are solid, liquid, and gas.  You've already discovered solids and liquids.  You may want to boil some water to show your student gas (the steam). 

Language Arts
 

Vocabulary:

Look up the suggested words in the dictionary with your child (or select your own words from the story).  You can use the vocabulary lapbook component if you’d like.

hail – to attract someone’s attention

trolley – a cart used for moving something

gumbo – a soup thickened with okra that usually contains meat or seafood and vegetables

express – a fast train or bus that only stops at a few stations

interrupt – to stop or hinder for a short time

rappel – to descend a cliff by sliding down a rope

chisel – to chip away at something and form it into a desired shape

scenery – the natural surroundings of an area, such as trees, mountains, streams

process – to prepare or change by a series of steps

liquefy – to make something that is solid into a liquid

Second Person Point of View:

In second person point of view, the narrator tells the story to another character using "you". Second person is the least commonly used point of view in fiction stories.  Can you and your child think of other examples of stories told using the second person point of view?  (Some of our favorites are the books by Laura Numeroff like If You Give a Mouse a Cookie.)  Discuss with your child why the author might choose to use the second point of view (perhaps to draw the reader into the story by making him or her feel part of the action).

Applied Math

Graphing:

Choose some cherry food products to taste.  Some possibilities include:  fresh cherries, cherry Kool-aid, cherry jello, cherry soda, cherry pie, dried cherries, black cherry ice cream, chocolate-covered cherries . . .

Poll family members (and others if you want) to see which cherry food is their favorite.  Use tally marks to track the response.  Using your data, make a graph (a pie graph might be fun) to illustrate which cherry food is the favorite.

Measurement::

Review units of measurement (cup, pint, quart, teaspoon, tablespoon).  Have your child experiment to figure out how many cups are in a pint, how many teaspoons equal a tablespoon, etc.

Life Skills

Cooking:

Make your favorite gumbo recipe so you can eat a bowl of it, even if you don’t dock in Louisiana at lunchtime.

And don’t forget to try your hand at making cherry pie (using the recipe found at the beginning of the book).

For more cherry recipes, check out this website. 

Art

Weaving:

Make a potholder using the cotton loops and loom.  If that’s not possible, weave a placemat using two different colors of construction paper cut into strips.

Pottery:

For a fun field trip, visit a pottery studio and paint a piece of pottery to take home.  Maybe you’ll want to make a mixing bowl that you can use when you make your cherry pie!

Music:

Here is a song you can sing to go along with the story (to the tune of “If You’re Happy and You Know It”)

If you make a cherry pie, you’ll need supplies
If you make a cherry pie, you’ll need supplies
If you make a cherry pie, you might travel far and wide
If you make a cherry pie, you’ll need supplies!

Try making up your own verses to go along with the song!  Use the book for inspiration!

Just for Fun

Make your own street scene, similar to what is found in the book!

For more fun learning about the United States, try this site.

If you are in the area, check out the National Cherry Festival.

You can read Marjorie Priceman’s thoughts about this book here.

The Corning Museum of Glass has all kinds of videos that you can watch on glass-making.  You can find them here.