One of the things I enjoyed most of the 5th and 6th grades was learning US and world geography. It's hard to say how either has benefitted me in life since I've stayed in Utah most all my life; however, it was somehow comforting to know that I knew where Perú was when I was called to serve a church service mission there for two years. I was to live in Lima which I knew was a highly populated capital city. I am always asking my kids in grade school if they've been taught the 50 states and their capitals. The answer up to this point is no. What the heck are they learning?
So I'm asking myself, why learn capital cities anyway? What does that information serve? I've decided that it does matter in subtle ways and that along with capital cities it is important to know other large cities in a particular state. And what else about a state is important? Are the examples below a little over the top? or do they in a small way keep one informed about areas within our country. To me, the answer is somewhere in the middle; however the examples below make it easy for me to stereotype people from any given state. And then there are those maps that don't seem to make any sense at all...
You must be able to find one of these businesses on every street corner in their respective state. Or is that not the case? I didn't notice any Hooters on my last visit to Florida, maybe they're all located in Boca Raton. Next time I visit Oregon, I'll be curious to see if everyone wears Nike shoes.
This is the superhero in charge of saving your state. If I called the super hotline in Texas I should expect to talk to Wonder Woman, or at least her side kick? or maybe just leave a voicemail? Makes sense that she's there in that big old state with her lasso skills and all.
So these businesses might not be the most famous, but they're places you must consider working at in each state.
You must be a fan of this team in this state.
If food influenced the name of a state as opposed to other features/history.
You can thank each of these states for these companies. How this list corresponds with the other business maps I have no idea. Maybe it means that New Mexicans are more likely to have orange fingers from all those Cheetos they are consuming.
Another person's opinion about best teams in any given state. This person is suggesting that these teams might not be the most popular, but they are the best. The validity of such information changes daily; something that drives cartographers up the wall.
The only thing given at halloween per state. This may influence kids under the age of 8 to want to live in a particular state.
Shouldn't this just be a huge map divided up between Coke and Pepsi?
These maps are somewhat interesting. The subtle messages definitely stick in your mind as a kid. Find the state that best fits your hobbies/interests. Is that a heavenly basketball flying over the Great Salt Lake? Do I need to move to California for a career in skateboarding?
Learn to stereotype each state with each of these platters. Funeral potatoes are always linked to Utah. In the eleven years I've been in my home, we've had them once. It's not that we don't like them, we do, it's just that people really only think about them when someone dies and you typically make them for members of a grieving family rather than bake them for yourself on a regular weekday.
What would states be like if the borders were determined by Fandom. Historically in some instances this isn't far from the truth. Actual state borders were affected by religious affiliation, opinions on slavery, pride in one's region. For an informative read on this check out Mark Stein's 'How The States Got Their Shapes'.
If state topic assignments like these are really that useful, maybe coming up with new categories to educate ourselves about one another during the next census would be cool:
Most appreciated body part per state
Favorite excuse per state
Biggest reason for coolness in every state
Most annoying aspect of each state
Most popular non-famous person per state
Favorite movie in each state
Best band/music artist from each state
Most common outfits/clothing from each state
Most common slang from each state
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