New Jersey Unit Study Books and Resources

The most fun part about doing unit studies in homeschool is incorporating unique books and engaging resources to enhance the learning experience. Below is a collection of resources and ideas to supplement your studies of New Jersey.
A LOT of books, games, and resources are included in this post, so please don't feel like my intention is for ALL of these resources to be used. Pick and choose what you like best to build your own New Jersey study that works for you and your family.
Interesting Facts About New Jersey:
Some facts about New Jersey that your students might find intriguing:
- Thomas Edison invented electric lights in 1879.
- The inventions of Thomas Edison made New Jersey the motion picture capital of the world until the early 1900s.
- New Jersey was the first state to sign the Bill of Rights.
- The first professional baseball game was played in Hoboken, NJ.
- New Jersey has the highest population density with an average of over 1,300 people per square mile, which is almost 14 times the national average.
- New Jersey has the highest urban population in the country with over 90% of the people living in highly populated cities.
- New Jersey is the only state in which all of the counties are classified as metropolitan areas.
Introduction to the State of New Jersey:
Our family studies the 50 states in the order that they joined the union. New Jersey was the third state! Below is how I like to introduce the state history and geography and other facts over the course of 5 days:
DAY 1 INTRO TO STATE: To get started learning about the state, I first like to focus on its geography using a student atlas like this National Geographic Atlas. We discuss the facts included in this student atlas and also discuss the geography. After this, we complete this States Info page that I created. You can download it for free here. We usually print it, fill in the notes, and then glue it in our State Notebook. Lastly for day one, we read the New Jersey section of the book It Happened in America. This book includes interesting and true historical stories about each state. I highly recommend this resource.
New Jersey Nature Study Ideas:
In addition to the "Intro to the State" items listed above, on each of those days (Day 1-5) we notebook nature journal topics about the state. We include this information in our State Notebook as well, so that everything is kept all in one place. This is a great opportunity to dive deeper with nature field guides to learn more about the trees, birds, flowers, animals, insects, and rocks or minerals that represent each state. You'll end up getting so much extra science snuck in when studying each state's bird, tree, flower, etc.
I have created free New Jersey nature journal pages that you can use and tape into your State Notebook. You can color the illustrations and take notes about what you learned about each nature topic. Download the free printable New Jersey Nature Journal pages here.
Day 1 New Jersey Nature Journaling: State Tree - Northern Red Oak
The state tree is the Northern Red Oak. Learn about deciduous forests and oak trees by exploring page 60-61 of the Usborne Living World Encyclopedia. Read about oak trees in Anna Comstock's Handbook of Nature Study (pgs. 639-640). You can also watch this video about Red Oaks on YouTube (5:59). While learning about the red oak from various sources, have your student take notes in these free printable nature journal pages I created for New Jersey. The illustrations in the free pages are intended to be colored and space is included to take notes about what was learned. If your kids like to draw they could try to sketch an eastern hemlock tree in their student notebook. Another option is to use these stickers from this product at Rainbow Resource to add to your State Notebook. Journal some notes about what you learned about the holly tree.

Day 2 New Jersey Nature Journaling: State Bird - American Goldfinch
Learn about New Jersey's state bird, the American Goldfinch, in DK Birds of North America (pg. 574). Next, add a little bit of humor to your birds studies with this hilarious book, United Tweets of America. You don't want to miss this book. Learn more about the American Goldfinch with Lesley the Bird Nerd on YouTube (8:03). Lastly, try playing a game of Match a Pair of Birds. Use my free printable Pennsylvania Nature Journal pages to color the hen and take notes about what you learned. Download the free printable here.
Day 3 New Jersey Nature Journaling: State Flower - Common Meadow Violet
The state flower of New Jersey is the common meadow violet. Learn more about violets and the interesting way that this flower's pollen is spread in Anna Comstock's Handbook of Nature Study (pgs. 476-479). After reading about violets, try playing a game of Pick a Flower. Finish up by either drawing a mountain laurel in your State Notebook or use the stickers from this product and add them to your State Notebook and then journal about what you learned. You can also download my free New Jersey nature journal pages. Color the illustrations and take notes about what you learned. Download it for free here.

Day 4 New Jersey Nature Journaling: State Mineral: Franklinite
Franklinite is the official mineral of New Jersey. Learn more about franklinite at this YouTube video (2:46). After learning about franklinite, a fun game option is the National Geographic Rocks and Minerals bingo game.
Day 5 New Jersey Nature Journaling: State Insect: European Honey Bee
The state insect of New Jersey is the European honey bee. Watch this SciShow video on YouTube about bees (3:59). Then watch this SciShow video to learn how bees make honey (6:01). The Let's Read and Find Out Science Honey In a Hive book is excellent for explaining bees. If you really want to dive deeper into the topic of honeybees, hives, honeycomb, queens, and drones you can explore Anna Comstock's Handbook of Nature Study (pgs. 391-399). Lastly, you can explore a little more about bees with the Firefly Encyclopedia of Animals (pgs 226-227). Download my free New Jersey nature journal pages. Color the illustrations and take notes about what you learned about bees. Download it for free here.

Copywork, Cursive, or Typing the State Preamble:
Preamble to the New Jersey State Constitution for Copywork or Typing Practice:
I created a free download to practice the Preamble in cursive. Students just beginning in cursive can trace it. Students more experienced in cursive can copy it in their Student Notebook. You can download the free cursive preamble here.
We, the people of the State of New Jersey, grateful to Almighty God for the civil and religious liberty which He hath so long permitted us to enjoy, and looking to Him for a blessing upon our endeavors to secure and transmit the same unimpaired to succeeding generations, do ordain and establish this Constitution.
New Jersey State Motto:
Liberty and Prosperity
In honor of New Jersey's state motto of Liberty and Prosperity, read the Aesop Fable of The Miser and His Gold. The moral of this fable is "a possession is worth no more than the use we make of it". Another Aesop fable you could read is The Goose With the Golden Eggs. The moral of this story is "those who have plenty want more and so lose all they have."
Here are a few scriptures that teach about prosperity:
- Deuteronomy 8:18
- Proverbs 10:22
- Proverbs 11:25
- Jeremiah 29:11
- 3 John 1:2
- Ecclesiastes 5:19
New Jersey History and Biographies:
James Fenimore Cooper:
James Fenimore Cooper, the famous American author from the early 19th century, is from New Jersey. His father, William Cooper, founded the famous town, Cooperstown, New York where the Baseball Hall of Fame is located. Some of his most famous novels are The Last of the Mohicans, The Deerslayer, and The Pioneers. You can read the fascinating story of his life in the book entitled James Fenimore Cooper: Leatherstocking Boy. Read it for free here.
Read a biography about James Fenimore Cooper in American Literature: Great Lives by Doris Faber.
Albert Einstein:
Albert Einstein is from New Jersey. Watch this Homeschool Pop video on Youtube about him (5:00). You could also read the Who HQ book What Was Albert Einstein?

New Jersey Literature:
There are some really fantastic read-aloud ideas for New Jersey. Several of these books are available to read for free online!
New Jersey Science Topics:
The Science for New Jersey is mainly based on the ideas and inventions of Thomas Edison, mainly electricity related. But, I did also include Bridges and some bridge STEM activities because of the many bridges that connect New York City to New Jersey.
Electricity: In honor of Thomas Edison, electricity and energy are the main science topics for New Jersey. Here are some resources to help your studies:
Usborne How It Works: Electricity: This lift the flap book by Usborne is all about electricity and how it works and where it comes from. A few experiments are included.

Thames & Kosmos Structural Engineering: Bridges & Skyscrapers: Learn physics concepts like force, load, compression, and tension with this hands on kit to build your own bridges.
Famous Musicians:
There are several famous musicians from New Jersey. Listen to music on YouTube from the following stars:
- Whitney Houston
- Jon Bon Jovi
- Frank Sinatra
- Bruce Springsteen
Famous Athletes:
Research online about the famous athletes from New Jersey:
- Derek Jeter
- Dennis Rodman
- Shaquille O'Neal
- Mike Trout
Cooking:
Don't forget to make some recipes from New Jersey with the Eat Your Way Through the USA book! Each state in the book includes a complete dinner with a main dish, a side, and a dessert!
State Games:
We really love playing games in our homeschool. Below are some geography games to practice state geography, learning the state flags, and memorizing capitals and other state facts.
