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Follow The Little Man In the Map and get additional clues to remember, rivers, lakes, mountains, and other fun stuff, onTwitter. @schoolsidepress |
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The Little Man In the Map is a winner in the Eric Hoffer Book Awards Children's Book Catagory - First Runner Up!! http://www.hofferaward.com/HAbookwinners.html#children |
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Check out these two videos to get an inside look of The Little Man In the Map, and how it teaches the name, shape and location of all US states. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ytdcN_6CStU http://www.youtube.com/user/EAMartonyi
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To date over 100 TOS Bloggers have written reviews for The Little Man In the Map book. The reviews are very positive, encouraging and heart warming. My greatest joy in reading these is to hear how it helped children remember the location of the states while having fun doing it. Thank-you to all of the contributors and those to come. If you would like to read the reviews just follow this link or copy and paste in your browser: http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/HomeschoolCrew/618374/ |
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FrogsJumpUSA #3 There are actually two geographic centers of the US states. The best known (and they have a sign) is when you only include the 48 contiguous states. But the center changes if you include Alaska and Hawaii. Where are they? If we look for the geographic center of just the 48 contiguous states it would be in the backpack of The Little Man In the Map. But he is carrying three books in the backpack. Which of the three books would you stick the pin into to show the geographic center? If you include the states of Alaska and Hawaii taking into account all 50 US states and stuck a pin right where the new center point would be, who would probably jump and say "ouch"? |
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To easily learn where the Mississippi River runs, just remember where The Little Man In the Map stands and this stanza: The Mississippi River States |
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It’s been a wild ride for me since my first book, The Little Man In the Map, was released. As much as I always felt that it would be appreciated for the quality of its concept and its ability to teach, I never expected it to be the recipient of book awards.
First, The Little Man In the Map won Silver in the Moonbeam Children's Book Awards. I was ecstatic! My wife, Irma, and I traveled to The next award came more recently. It was the IPPY Outstanding Book of the Year Award for Most Original Concept. This award is especially meaningful, as it recognizes the books’ unique approach to teaching kids (and even their parents) the names, locations, and shapes of the At the same time, The Little Man In the Map was Finalist in the ForWord Magazine Book of the Year Awards and in the Next Generation Indie Book Awards. I hope you all excuse this bit of shameless bragging. But I am so very happy that the publicity generated by these awards is getting the word out that here is a book that not only makes learning the states easy and fun, but makes it easy to remember them, too. Thanks for sharing the fun with me. OK, now let’s start looking at FrogJumpUSA places to write about next time! |
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I love the name FrogsJumpUSA. It brings back so many wonderful memories. When I was a kid we lived in a rural area of farms, open fields and woods, with a lake very close by. I loved the freedom of the country and loved the lake. My brother and I salvaged an old sunken rowboat and fixed it by putting a lot of tar on the bottom (big mistake!), and painted it with paint we got free from one of the farmers. It still leaked like crazy, but I loved to go out in the very early summer mornings, sometimes hunting for frogs, but mostly just enjoying the quiet solitude of the water and the sounds of nature all around me. I had hoped to use a name for my Blog that every child could identify with. After all frogs can be found in every corner of this great country. However, I have also come to realize that the name everyone is familiar with is The Little Man In the Map. So to make it easier for parents to find this blog I am changing the name to The Little Man In the Map and FrogsJumpUSA. I will continue to talk about Frogs Jump USA as we talk about all the interesting things in this country. So the content will not change, but the name has. So to restate where FrogsJumpUSA is - By ponds and lakes, by streams and rivers; in forests, deserts, mountains and valleys; along country roads and bustling highways; near well-worn paths and lonely trials; in city parks - and in your own backyard. Anywhere in the USA. What interesting things are in your neighborhood? Let us know.
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You have probably heard of the Man in the Moon, the face on Mars, and even of Elvis on Mars. But did you know that there is a man who stands in the middle of the USA? He is so big that, to see all of him, you would have to look down from the International Space Station. He is 1000 miles tall. But that is not all; he wears a hat that is 400 miles high. How did he get there? Well, the settlers who drew the boundaries of the states had something to do with it. But most of the credit goes to the mighty river that has been carving his features for two million years. (Yes, he’s been a tough one to shape, and the river is still making changes.) First of all, the river caused the Man in the Map to face east so he could greet the rising sun. Below the Man’s hat, the river carved his forehead and his great big nose, then his lips and his tiny chin. The river dressed the Man in a really nice shirt and in neat pants (they look like shorts). Finally, the river gave him boots to wear to keep his feet dry. For hundreds of years the Man has been standing there, patiently waiting for you to find him. You probably can’t get reservations on the International Space Station, but you can still find him. All you need is a map of the USA. Find the five states that shape the Man (you will be amazed at what you see). Then come back here and write about your discoveries. Describe the Man and the states that form him. Where does he stand? Which river created his features? Write out the first three letters of the five states that make up the Man, and you will have his name. Find the Little Man in the Map, and you will have found FrogsJumpUSA #1. Once everyone has found him, we will look for FrogsJumpUSA #2. Is there a FrogsJumpUSA in your neighborhood?
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By ponds and lakes, by streams and rivers; in forests, deserts, mountains and valleys; along country roads and bustling highways; near well-worn paths and lonely trials; in city parks - and in your own backyard. Anywhere in the USA where there is a story to be told about our land, there is FrogsJumpUSA - and the travels of The Little Man In the Map. |