THE USA

(The United States of America)

A bit of geography
The United States is a very big country located in North America.

 Its got 50 states and a federal district, Washington DC, its capital city.
It lies between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. Its bordered by Canada to the north and Mexico to the south.

Over 312 million people live in the United States.

It is the third largest country in the world.

Mountains
Largest mountain range: Rocky Mountains

Rivers
Largest river system: Mississippi River

Lakes
Largest lake system: The Great Lakes

It is one of the world's most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, because of the inmigration from many countries.

Languages

The most spoken language in the United States is English. The second language is Spanish.

President and currency

The president of the US is Mr. Barack Obama. The currency is the dollar.

American Symbols

Symbols

The flag

The colours of the flag are red, white and blue. There are 50 stars to represent 50 states. The 13 stripes represent the first thirteen colonies.

The Statue of Liberty

She was a gift from France. She stands in New York Harbour. Shes also known as Lady Liberty because she is a symbol of freedom and democracy. She represented hope and freedom to the immigrants who came here from other countries.

The Bald Eagle

The bald eagle is the symbol of the USA because it symbolizes courage, strength, and freedom. The bald eagle can be seen in many places like the Presidents flag, and on a one dollar bill.

The Liberty Bell

The liberty bell is in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It rang when Congress signed the Declaration of Independence. In 1846 a crack appeared.

Mount Rushmore
Memorial in honour of Presidents Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt, and Lincoln. It is located in the Black Hills of South Dakota.

The White House

It is the home of the President. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, D.C. George Washington is the only President who didnt live there. The Presidents Office is called the Oval Office.

Uncle Sam
Congress adopted Uncle Sam as an official symbol in 1961. He is best known for his army recruiting posters, which said

I want you!

The Washington Monument

It was built as a memorial to the first President, George Washington. Its image is mirrored in the reflecting pond.

Superstitions

Superstitions

Good or bad luck?

Are these good luck or bad luck for Northamericans?

Celebrities

Singers

Actors and actresses

Sports

TRADITIONS

Thanksgiving Day. Christmas. Independence Day.

THANKSGIVING DAY
Thanksgiving day is celebrated on the last Thursday in November.

On Thanksgiving families get together and have a big harvest feast! They eat turkey, corn, stuffing, potatoes, pumpkin pie, ... Everyone gets a BIG stomach ache!

One of the customs on Thanksgiving is being thankful for people coming to your house. In turns, each one says: Im thankful for

A bit . of History
Thanksgiving became a holiday almost 400 years ago, in 1621, when a group of English Pilgrims arrived to America and settled in 1620. They were a group of Puritans who escaped from England due to their religion believes.

The pilgrims travelled to America on a ship called the Mayflower. The trip to America was long and hard. There were storms and the ship was really crowded.

 When they got to America, it was winter and there were no food or houses. Many of the pilgrims died from sickness, starvation and freezing to death.

 There were some people who lived in America already: Indians. They saw the Pilgrims suffering and they decided to help them.

 They showed them how to hunt and fish. They showed them how to grow different plants, like corn and pumpkins. They helped them build houses out of the trees there.

 When it was winter again, the Pilgrims had food and a place to live. They were so happy that they decided to have a feast and invite their friends, the Indians.

 So they had a great feast that lasted for a whole week. They ate the typical autumn food: turkey, fish, deer, sweet potatoes, corn and pumpkin.

 But the first thing they did was to say thanks for having friends, food, houses and a place to live.

 And this tradition continues today.

CHRISTMAS IN THE USA

Outdoor decorations
The Christmas season begins the day after Thanksgiving Day. People decorate their houses with Christmas lights, wreaths and evergreen branches.

Indoor decorations
People decorate the insides of their houses too. The most popular decoration is the Christmas tree, with lots of lights, tinsel and ornaments, especially candy canes. At the top, they put a star or an angel.

Stockings
People also hang stockings by the fireplace or on the staircase.

Carol singers
Some people go door to door singing Christmas carols too.

Christmas cookies
Another tradition is to bake Christmas cookies. People eat them all over the season, but children leave Christmas cookies and milk for Santa on Christmas Eve.

Mistletoe
Another tradition says that if you stands under the mistletoe, you can be kissed or you can kiss someone.

New years Eve

The Christmas season ends with New years. On New Years Eve in Times Square in New York, there is a large ball that drops and counts down (10 seconds) to the new year at midnight. This is broadcasted so that people all over the country can watch it on TV.

Virginia