Connecticut

by Nancy Furstinger

Book Overview

Describes the geography, plants and animals, history, economy, language, culture and people of the state of Connecticut This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Library Binding
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0516223240
• ISBN13: 9780516223247
• Release Date: January 2002
• Publisher: Scholastic Library Publishing
• Length: 80 Pages
• Weight: 1.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 9.4" x 9.7"
• Age Range: 8 to 11 years
• Grade Range: Grades 3 to 6

Customer Reviews

Taking a tour of Connecticut, the Constitution State

In introducing the Constitution State (home of the first written constitution adopted in the United States) in the first chapter of this volume in the From Sea to Shining Sea series, Nancy Furstinger talks about how Connecticut welcomes visitors to the New England region. I had not thought of that before but it makes sense (especially since I started with Maine in this series and Connecticut is my last stop in New England, so just reverse the path and it all makes sense). If you have been to the Great Hall at the Peabody Museum at Yale (page 60) or Dinosaur State Park near Rocky Hill (page 17), then you know that there are lots of dinosaur skeletons and footprints to be seen in Connecticut. Furstinger asks what else comes to mind when you think of Connecticut and after a listing a few possibilities, proceeds to give you more to remember next time around. The geography of the third smallest state is covered in the second chapter, The Land of Connecticut, which divides it into five distinct regions, and also looks at the Rivers and Lakes, and Climate. The biggest chapter is the next one, Connecticut Through History, which begins with the dinosaurs, continues through the Native Americans, Dutch Explorers, and English Settlers, to the colonial period. Connecticut's Constitution gets its own section, as do the Industrial Revolution, fighting slavery, and the world wars. The next chapter covers Governing Connecticut, briefly looking at the three branches of government before taking a tour of Hartford, the state capital. The accompanying map of downtown Hartford shows that the Mark Twain and Harriet Beecher Stowe houses are neighbors, and how to get from the Old State House and State Capital. The last chapter is devoted to The People and Places of Connecticut, where Furstigner looks at what working people do in the state and then takes her young readers on a tour of th state, giving a good idea of what there is to see in each region. This is also where we get the book's recipe for Hartford Election Cake (it has raisins in it and the original receiper made a 90 pound cake). The history is a strength of both this volume and the series, especially in comparison to what you will find in other series. But Furstinger also covers the basic geography issues as well. In addition to the main topics the book is filled with informative little sidebars as well. Questions are raised in Find Out More sections (e.g., Why does the ground groan as it settles?), What's in a Name? covers origins (e.g., Middlebury's town meeting house is 10 kilometers from Waterbury, Southbury, and Woodbury), and Famous Firsts lists just that (e.g., the first U.S. amusement park was built in Bristol in 1846). Extra! Extra! adds interesting footnotes (e.g., Connecticut once had two capitals), and Who's Who in Connecticut provides mini biographies (e.g., Harriet Beecher Stowe, Katharine Hepburn). These are just the sort of interesting tidbits that can help punch up your school