The Colorful State of Colorado FOR THIRD GRADE STUDENTS BY MISS J.

Colorado was… Made part of the Union in 1876 as the 38 th state (Colorado, 2015) Is the 8 th largest state in America Called Colorado by a group of Spanish explorers because the ground is red

Colorado… Has a capitol called Denver The state flower is the white and purple columbine The state bird in Colorado is the Lark Bunting Colorado is sometimes called the Centennial State or Colorful Colorado (Colorado, 2015) (Viv, 2007)

Some Unique Features to Colorado are… Four Corners is the only place in the United States where four states connect at one point (Four Corners, n.d.) These states are Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, and Colorado Denver, the capitol of Colorado, sits exactly one mile above sea level (Westphal, 2014) Watch Me!

Colorado’s Resources are… Energy and minerals - the Rocky Mountains provide plenty of resources (Colorado Facts, 2015) Colorado’s climate is good for raising cattle and growing corn and grains Tourism – Colorado’s natural beauty invites people from all over the world to visit Colorado, which puts money into Colorado’s economy

People of Colorado – John Gunnison John Gunnison was born November 11 th, 1812, in Goshen, New Hampshire (John W. Gunnison Expedition, 2015) Grew up to graduate military school and moved on to eventually become a Captian of the military. Gunnison completed 5 expiditions, some of those expiditions were through Colorado

People of Colorado – John Gunnison Gunnison is most well- known in Colorado for the mapping and exploring of the Rocky Mountains, looking for routes to Utah His explorations helped in the understanding of geography west of the Mississippi River (John W. Gunnison Expedition, 2015) John Gunnison died during his fifth expedition to Utah in 1853

Colorado Gold Rush The Gold Rush of Colorado happened between John H. Gregory discovered the first gold vein in 1859 (Colorado Mines, 2015) Due to Gregory’s discovery, more people moved to the Colorado mountains, hoping to find more

Colorado Gold Rush As gold became scarce in the 1900’s, mining for gold slowed down Until World War II in 1940’s, gold was still considered valuable, despite the value of the gold changing often (Colorado Mines, 2015) Today, gold can still be found throughout the Rocky Mountains, but it is not mined as often due to gold’s low value

Lesson Review When Was Colorado Made a State? What Are the States that Make Up Four Corners? What is John Gunnison Most Well-Known for in Colorado? Colorado was made a state in 1876 as the 38 th state The four states that make up Four Corners are Colorado, Utah, Arizona, and New Mexico John Gunnison is most well-known for the mapping and exploring of the Colorado Rocky Mountains

References Colorado. (2015). History. Retrieved from Colorado Facts. (2015). National Geographic. Retrieved from Colorado Mines. (2015). Mining Artifacts. Retrieved from Four Corners. (n.d.). Navajo Nation Parks. Retrieved from John W. Gunnison Expedition. (2015). National Park Service. Retrieved from Viv. (2007). Columbine [Online Image]. Retrieved from Westphal, Luci. (2014). Four Corners Monument – In a Colorado Minute (Week 200) [Motion Picture]. Retrieved from