Juan learns about Florida's state symbols from his cousins Miguel and Rosa and Aunt Carmen on the car ride from the airport. He discovers Florida has a state drink of orange juice, state animals like the alligator and Florida panther, and a state flag and flower. Aunt Carmen explains that the Florida legislature decides which symbols represent the state and its history. By the end of the car ride, Juan begins to feel more positively about moving to Florida as he learns about its unique features.

1. Content Area: 4th grade Social Studies
Serena Utz
RED 6545

2. For Juan, Florida was a
new and intimidating
place. He wasn‟t sure
how he felt about
moving here! He was
used to living in Puerto
Rico with his family.
Juan had only visited
Florida a few times to
see his Aunt
Carmen, who had taken
him to Disney World.
Other than that, he
didn‟t see what the fuss
was about Florida!
Have you or anyone you know been in this
situation before? How might you feel? How
much do you think Juan knows about
Florida? Turn and talk with your shoulder
partner.

3. Juan wanted to know.
He was used to
knowing everyone and
everything about
where he was from.
How might you describe Juan‟s character?
Can you relate to how he may feel? What are
some special things about Florida that you
think Juan should learn about? Try and think of
qualities that are only unique to Florida.

4. Juan‟s Aunt Carmen kept telling him how much he would love the
“Sunshine State.” Juan didn‟t understand why they kept calling it the
Sunshine State and not just Florida? His cousins kept saying how they
couldn‟t wait to take him to the beach and to see the sand. “What‟s so
special about the beach?” said Juan. “Puerto Rico has beaches and
sand, too!” he grumbled under his breath. He was not looking forward
to having to make new friends and move to a brand new place. Plus,
he didn‟t feel like he was very good at speaking English. He didn‟t
want his new classmates to make fun of him!
Why do you think
Florida is called the
“Sunshine State?”
Talk with your
shoulder partner. How
might Florida beaches
differ from beaches in
other places?

5. Juan and his family flew into Florida on an extremely sunny, sweltering
Saturday in August. Juan‟s Aunt Carmen and his cousins picked him
and his younger sister Paola up from the airport, along with Juan‟s
parents. As Juan‟s parents chatted with Aunt Carmen in the car on the
way home, Juan couldn‟t help but notice these rows of trees outside of
the window. “Aunt Carmen, what are all those rows of trees for?” Juan
inquired. “They‟re everywhere!”
What do you
think these are?
Have you ever
seen these
before? What do
you notice
hanging from the
trees?

6. Mmmm, I love orange juice! Juan
thought to himself. Maybe Florida
won‟t be such a bad place if they
have such a delicious drink as
their official drink!
“Yeah!” piped in Juan‟s
cousin Miguel. “The
orange groves produce
oranges, which are
used to make orange
juice! Did you know it‟s
Florida‟s state drink?!”
What does Miguel mean
when he says that orange
juice is “Florida‟s state
drink”?

7. Juan began to think. “Hey Miguel, does
Florida have any other cool things like that?”
Miguel didn‟t quite understand Juan‟s
question. “Do you mean what other drinks
does Florida have?” “No!” Juan exclaimed.
“What‟s that term you used before, you said
„state drink‟?”
What do you think Juan is trying to ask Miguel? What
does it mean to have a „state drink‟? Are there other
things you can think of that are labeled in that way?

8. “Ohhhh, now I get what you‟re saying! You‟re asking me about
Florida‟s state symbols!” Miguel exclaimed. “Florida has unique
features, just like other states in the United States. But if you ask
me, Florida has the best symbols.” Now Juan was really curious.
“Like what other kind of symbols? Like does Florida have a state
color?” asked Juan. Aunt Carmen chuckled and popped into the
conversation. “Juan, Florida has a lot state symbols, but there
isn‟t a „state‟ favorite for everything. Florida has a state flag, for
example. It‟s special to the history of Florida!”
What do you know about Florida‟s
state flag? Have you seen it before?
What other state symbols do you
think Florida has?

9. “One of our state animals is the
alligator!” Miguel informed Juan.
“This reptile can be really
dangerous, and they are all over
Florida!”
“Yeah, but the alligator isn’t nearly
as important as the Florida Panther!”
argued Rosa. “We may have a state
reptile, but this is the state ANIMAL
of Florida!”

10. Juan was feeling a little
overwhelmed. “Aunt Carmen, how
many different state symbols does
Florida have?” he asked. “Who
decides what becomes a state
symbol and what doesn‟t?”
Who do you think decides what is and isn‟t a state symbol? How do you
think certain symbols get picked? What kinds of step might this process
involve? Talk your ideas out with your shoulder partner.

11. “Well, Florida has several different state symbols,” Aunt Carmen
explained. “Like Miguel and Rosa mentioned, Florida has a state
drink and state animals. Florida also has a state flag, which has
a special seal.” “Wait,” Paola interrupted. “Like the animal the
seal?” Aunt Carmen laughed. “No, silly! The seal on Florida‟s flag
is a special design that describes Florida. It has a lot to do with
the history of Florida, and was first created in 1868!”
What do you notice about Florida‟s
state seal? Do you recognize the
phrase „In God We Trust‟ from
anywhere else? What in this picture
looks familiar to you? In your opinion,
do you think the seal is an accurate
representation of Florida‟s unique
features?

12. “But who decides what
becomes a state
symbol?” Juan asked.
“Can anyone just
decide?”
What are your thoughts?
Can anyone just decide
what will be considered a
state symbol?

13. “Not just anyone can decide what is and isn‟t a state
symbol of Florida. All of Florida‟s state symbols have one
thing in common: they all say something special about our
State. It‟s up to the Florida legislature to decide what
symbols in Florida become official,” Aunt Carmen explained
in further detail. Juan thought for a minute. “So, these
symbols show other people and states what is special
about Florida. When did the Florida legislature pick these
symbols?”
What is the Florida legislature? What do
you think they do? How do you think they
vote on whether to accept or reject a state
symbol?

14. “To be honest with you, I don‟t know the exact dates of when the
Florida legislature voted to accept state symbols,” Aunt Carmen
admitted. “However, because our state symbols have to do with
the history of Florida, some of the symbols were decided a really
long time ago! I know for a fact that Florida‟s state flower, the
orange blossom, has been official since 1909,” Aunt Carmen
explain enthusiastically. “You may want to ask your teacher when
you start on Monday,” Miguel suggested. “My teacher showed us
some really cool videos on Florida history when I first started at
my school. I like Florida a lot more know that I know more about
it!” Miguel added.

15. Juan gazed out the window.
He didn‟t realize how much
time had passed since they
had left the airport. He had
been so involved in the
conversation with his family!
Maybe Florida won‟t be so
bad, he thought to himself.
Maybe Florida really does
have a lot of great things to
offer me, even though it‟s not
what I‟m used to. He smiled
and leaned closer towards the
window so that he could get a
better view of the orange
groves zooming past.
“Welcome to the Sunshine
State,” he murmured softly
with a smile.
Talk with your shoulder partner
about how Juan feels now as
compared to the beginning of the
story. How have his feelings
changed? What are some of the
new things Juan learned about
Florida?

16. • State seal
• State flag
• State animal
• State flower
• Official
• Florida
• “Sunshine State”
• Symbol
• Legislature

17. • S.S.4.A.1.2 Synthesize information related to Florida
history through print and electronic media.
• 4.RL.1 Refer to details and examples in a text when
explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing
inferences from the text.
• 4.RI.4 Determine the meaning of general academic and
domain-specific words or phrases in a text relevant to a
grade 4 topic or subject area.