This 3-page 4th grade organizer helps students plan a report on one US state. Page 1 is a completed example for Ohio, with a small map and three facts. Page 2 is the blank version with ten numbered boxes, including a space to draw the state outline and mark the capital with a star. Page 3 is a teacher marking guide with California as a sample. It fits Common Core W.4.8.
W.4.8
“Recall relevant information from experiences or gather relevant information from print and digital sources; take notes and categorize information, and provide a list of sources.”
Boxes 1 to 9 sort researched facts by category, and box 10 asks for the source.
“Describe a state's capital, region, borders and symbols.”
Boxes 2 to 7 ask for the capital, region, year of statehood, nickname, bird and bordering states and water.
Boxes filled in for Columbus, the Midwest, 1803, the Buckeye State and the Northern Cardinal, plus the bordering states and Lake Erie. A small map marks Columbus. The example ends with three facts and a source.
Ten numbered boxes: name, capital, region, year of statehood, nickname, state bird, bordering states and water, an outline to draw, three facts and the source used.
What to accept in each box, with California as the sample. Box 10 asks for a credible source, such as a textbook, library book or educational website.
Model first
Go through the Ohio page together before anyone starts. Ask where each fact could have come from, so students see why box 10 matters.
A few boxes a day
Spread the research over several days, one or two boxes at a time. The outline and the three facts take the longest.
Wall display
Hang the finished outlines around a wall map of the United States. Each outline then labels a state and shows its capital star.
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