5th Grade American History State Project
Choose one of the following products for your final state project. These projects will be
due on Monday, May 27th. Your project will be graded differently depending on which
product you choose. Once you have decided which product you want to complete I will give
you the rubric that corresponds to your product.
State in a Can
Use a coffee can or something of similar size.
Outside of can: Cover with a piece of construction paper. In fancy letters put the name of
the state. Put symbols of the state. State seal, State song, State animal, etc.
Inside the can: A cube with a picture of products grown in the state. A poem about the
state, can be an acrostic, or limerick. A journal of a 14 day vacation that their family takes
to attractions in their state. Create a small booklet for this that fits in the can. A map of
their state colored with capital, major cities, and rivers labeled.
On the top of the can: Make two slits in the lid. Take a long strip of white paper and divide
it into 10 squares. In the first strip put the name of the state. In the 9 remaining squares
draw pictures of attractions in their state. Put it through the slits and tape the two ends
together. This will then roll like a film strip.
State Cereal Box Project
Pick a state. Research your state (we make up a research grid with categories of
landforms, products grown and manufactured, famous people, history, trivia, etc. to
organize their facts.) Name the cereal based on information you learned. The front has
the name of the cereal and a backdrop that depicts something about their state. The back
of the box can be games trivia contests, etc. about their state. One side has the
ingredients which are the products grown and manufactured. The other side panel has
state facts about the history of the state (time-line, etc.). The cereal box is a real cereal
box that is covered with white paper. We trace the box on butcher paper and let the
children draw, write and color with it flat. Then we glue the paper to the cereal box and
wrap it like a present. It gives the students an opportunity to really show their creativity.
United States Map Project
Trace your state on cardboard and cut it out. On the back of your state include the
products made in your state, trivia, state symbols, state motto, interesting facts, etc.
Then decorate and label your cut out with the rivers, mountains, etc of your state. Label
the capital and other landmarks. (Tip: make a huge bucket of salt dough and they
cover their states while sculpting in rivers, mountains, etc. Once dry, they paint them,
green= land, brown= mountains, blue= rivers. Then we label the state capital and other
landmarks with jujubeas or some other small candy).
State Games
Create a game about your game. Include the game pieces, rules, at least 20 facts about
your state, and a game board (design based on your state or a landmark from the state).
An old clothes box makes a great box for the game! Decorate your game board based on
things found in your state (products made in your state, trivia, state symbols, state
motto, interesting facts, etc).
My Proposal – Submit for teacher approval
I would like to make __________________________ to show my understanding of my
state because ____________________________________________________________
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