Florida State Study

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Learning all about ‘The Sunshine State’ with your kids as you study the US is easy and fun using this Florida State Study! 

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Before we started going on cruises, I had only been to Florida once when I was a little girl. We visited my Great-Aunt in Tampa, but I don’t remember anything about the trip specifically. 

Being a Texas girl, there are similarities between Texas and Florida that I love. Ocean + Sand + Sun = Fun

While I haven’t spent a lot of time in ‘The Sunshine State’ personally, I do enjoy visiting and can see myself spending longer amounts of time on their beautiful beaches. 

Thanks to online learning, you don’t have to take a trip to Florida to learn all about it. Although, a trip to the Florida beaches is never a bad idea in my opinion. 

I designed this Florida State Study to make learning about ‘The Sunshine State’, both a fun and educational experience. I’ve included videos, articles, literature options, state facts, famous landmarks and more to provide thorough learning opportunities for your children. 

Florida State Study

Florida Literature and Research Resources
Florida: What's So Great Ab...Shop on AmazonThe Kids' Guide to Birds of...Shop on AmazonALL ABOUT FLORIDA: 100+ Int...Shop on AmazonF Is for Florida (Sunshine ...Shop on AmazonWelcome to Florida (Welcome...Shop on AmazonHello, Florida!Shop on AmazonS is for Sunshine: A Florid...Shop on AmazonA (Mostly) Kids' Guide to N...Shop on AmazonCelebrating Florida: 50 Sta...Shop on AmazonGood Night Florida (Good Ni...Shop on AmazonFlorida Books for Kids Gift...Shop on AmazonKIDS LOVE FLORIDA, 4th Edit...Shop on AmazonMission St. Augustine: A Sc...Shop on AmazonWhat's That?!: Florida Keys...Shop on AmazonFlorida My Travel Diary: Ki...Shop on AmazonA (mostly) Kids' Guide to S...Shop on AmazonHidden History of FloridaShop on AmazonFlorida (A True Book: My Un...Shop on AmazonThe History of FloridaShop on AmazonHidden History of the Flori...Shop on AmazonFlorida Pirates: From the S...Shop on AmazonFinding Florida: The True H...Shop on AmazonOld Florida: Florida's Magn...Shop on AmazonMarjory Saves the Everglade...Shop on AmazonFlorida Wildlife Coloring B...Shop on AmazonFourteenth Colony: The Forg...Shop on AmazonEerie Florida: Chilling Tal...Shop on AmazonFlorida LighthousesShop on AmazonLostmans Heritage: Pioneers...Shop on AmazonGladesmen: Gator Hunters, M...Shop on AmazonThe Swamp: The Everglades, ...Shop on AmazonA People's History of Flori...Shop on AmazonBuying Disney's World: The ...Shop on AmazonA History Lover's Guide to ...Shop on AmazonHidden History of Fort Myer...Shop on AmazonHidden History of St. Augus...Shop on AmazonA Florida Pioneer: The Adve...Shop on AmazonBlack Society in Spanish Fl...Shop on AmazonTales of Yesterday's Florid...Shop on AmazonA Concise History of Florid...Shop on AmazonThe Florida Keys-A History ...Shop on AmazonHastings: Florida's Potato ...Shop on AmazonNaples (FL) (Images of Amer...Shop on AmazonPine Island (Images of Amer...Shop on AmazonSubmerged History: Underwat...Shop on AmazonSt. Augustine (FL) (Images ...Shop on AmazonGainesville (Images of Amer...Shop on AmazonHistory of the Pioneers: Th...Shop on AmazonClearwater (FL) (Images of ...Shop on AmazonLost OrlandoShop on Amazon

All About Florida

Date Florida became a State

March 3, 1845

State Capital

Tallahassee

State Abbreviation

FL

State Population

21.48 million

State Size

59,988 square miles 

State Name Origin

In 1513, when Ponce de Leon was exploring the New World, he discovered the area which is now known as Florida. He named it after the Spanish Easter celebration, Pascua Florida, the Feast of Flowers. 

State Motto

The motto, In God We Trust, was chosen in 1868 to be placed on the state of Florida seal. The variation “In God Is Our Trust” was also used for many years until “In God We Trust” was officially chosen to be the state motto in 2006.

State Nickname

‘The Sunshine State’ is the state nickname officially chosen by the Florida legislature in 1970.

State Song

In 1935, ‘The Swanee River’ (Old Folks at Home) was adopted by the state legislature to be the official state song.

State Flag

The Florida state flag was adopted in 1900 and has two diagonal red bars crossing on a white background with the state seal in its center. 

State Bird 

In 1927, the mockingbird was adopted as the state bird of Florida.

State Tree

The Sabal Palm (the most widely distributed palm tree) was chosen as the state tree of Florida in 1953.

State Freshwater Fish

In 1975, the Largemouth Bass was adopted as the state freshwater fish of Florida.

State Animal

The Florida panther was chosen as the state animal by the 1982 legislature and is the most endangered of all Florida state symbols.

State Butterfly 

Florida legislature adopted the Zebra Longwing Butterfly to be the state butterfly in 1996.

State Marine Animal

The Manatee was chosen as the Florida state marine animal in 1975.

State Shell

In 1969, the horse conch was adopted as the Florida state shell.

State Reptile

The American Alligator, which is so common in Florida that it can often be seen even by the side of the road, was adopted as the state reptile in 1987.

State Flower

In 1909, the orange blossom was adopted as the state flower of Florida.

Geography

  • Rivers
    • Alafia River
    • Alapaha River
    • Apalachiocola River
    • Arbuckle Creek
    • Aucilla River
    • Big Coldwater Creek
    • Big Swamp Creek
    • Black Creek
    • Blackwater River
    • Boiling Creek
    • Caney Creek
    • Chassahowitzka River
    • Chipola River
    • Choctawhatchee River
    • Conecuh River
    • Cowarts Creek
    • Econfina Creek
    • Econfina River
    • Econlockhatchee River
    • Escambia River
    • Estero River
    • Fisheating Creek
    • Hendry Creek
    • Hillsborough River
    • Holley Creek
    • Holmes Creek
    • Myakka River
    • New River
    • Ochlockonee River
    • Ocklawaha River
    • Orange River
    • Peace River
    • Santa Fe River
    • Shell Creek
    • Shoal River
    • Silver River 
    • Sopchoppy River
    • St. Johns River
    • St. Lucie River
    • St. Marks River
    • St. Sebastian River
    • Tomoka River
    • Waccasassa River
    • Wacissa River
    • Wwawkulla River
    • Withlacoochee River
    • Yellow River
  • Lakes
    • Lake Apopka
    • Blue Cypress Lake
    • Crescent Lake
    • East Lake Tohopekaliga
    • Lake Eustis
    • Lake George
    • Lake Griffin
    • Lake Harris
    • Lake Iamonia
    • Lake Istokpoga
    • Lake Kissimmee
    • Lake Okeechobee
    • Rodman Reservoir
    • Lake Seminole
    • Lake Talquin
    • Lake Tohopekaliga
  • Forests
    • Apalachicola National Forest
    • Osceola National Forest 
    • Ocala National Forest

Highways

  • Interstate 95 – North and South
  • Interstate 75- North and South
  • Interstate 10 – East and West
  • Interstate 4 – Northeast and Southwest
  • Interstate 75E – Northeast and Southwest

National Parks

State Parks

Famous Landmarks

Famous People

  • Tim Tebow (August 14, 1987- present) was born in Makati, Philippines where his parents were serving as missionaries. He was three years old when his family moved back to the United States to live in Jacksonville, FL where he and his five siblings grew up and were homeschooled by their parents. Tim played football in high school with a local Christian school and during college. He was drafted by the NFL in 2010 and has played for the Broncs, Jets, Patriots and Eagles. He also played baseball for the New York Mets from 2016 until he retired in February of this year. He is the first and only homeschooler to receive the Heisman Trophy. 
  • Philip Don Estridge (June 23, 1937- August 2, 1985) was born in Jacksonville, FL and is known as the “father of the IBM PC”. His expertise as a computer engineer led to the development of the original IBM personal computer and eventually, he became vice president of IBM. Even Steve Jobs offered him a job as president of Apple Computer, but he declined the offer. 
  • T.D. Allman (October 16, 1944- present) was born in Tampa, FL and is a freelance journalist. He is probably best known for his expose reports in 1968 on the CIA’s “secret war” in Laos and Cambodia. He has gone on to work for various newspapers and magazines and has also written two books on Florida.
  • Ariana Grande (June 26, 1993- present) was born in Bocca Raton, FL where she performed as a child in musical theater. She is best known for her musical talent as a female vocalist and has won two Grammy Awards.
  • Debbie Harry (July 1, 1945- present) was born in Miami, FL as Angela Trimble but was adopted when she was three months old and renamed Deborah Ann Harry. She began her singing career in the late 1960’s and in the 1970’s she and her boyfriend Chris Stein formed the famous early new wave band “Blondie”. 
  • John Young (Sept. 24, 1930- January 5, 2018), was born in California but his family moved to Florida when he was 6 years old, and he spent his growing up years in Orlando. After college, he enlisted in the Navy and served his country for 25 years. After retiring from the military John was selected to join the NASA Astronaut Group 2. He served on the Gemini 3 and 10, Apollo 10 and 16, and Space Shuttle 1 and 9 programs. 
  • Pat Boone (June 1, 1934- present) was born in Jacksonville, FL. His family moved to Nashville, TN when he was a young child and and he began singing and preforming in the Centennial Park in the early 1950’s. Pat Boone has been successful in many arenas during his life: as a gospel singer, actor, television personality, and motivational speaker.

Interesting Facts 

  • Florida has more golf courses than any other state in the U.S.
  • St. Augustine, FL is the oldest city in the United States!
  • About 1,000 people move to Florida every single day.
  • Miami is the only major city in America founded by a woman.
  • Florida is the flattest state in the union.
  • The city of Jacksonville is the largest city in the United States in terms of square miles.
  • Florida has more toll bridges and toll roads than any other state.
  • St. John’s River in Florida is one of the few rivers that flows from south to north.
  • The world’s largest occupied wooden structure, Belleview Biltmore Resort and Spa, is located in Tampa Bay, FL.

Florida Learning Resources 

What did your children enjoy learning the most about the state of Florida?

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Misty Leask

Misty Leask is an imperfect country girl from Texas, learning alongside her blessings while loving her husband and living life in the North Woods of Maine. She started Year Round Homeschooling because she wanted to come alongside fellow homeschool moms and help them find the freedom and resources they needed to homeschool their children year round. You can find her on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest
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