Thanksgiving in Florida

Hi First Graders!

While you were on Thanksgiving break, I had a nice trip to Florida. It was a LONG car ride. 11 hours! I thought we would never get there!

Once we arrived, we had a Thanksgiving dinner that was probably a lot like yours: turkey and stuffing, lots of veggies, and pumpkin pie. Florida is one of the 50 states, and all of the United States have the same Thanksgiving tradition. After that, I saw some things, and did some things that were pretty different from Rock Hill.

 

On Friday, we went to a mermaid show! The mermaids swam and danced underwater, and we watched them through big windows. It was very beautiful to see.

 

 

 

They didn't have tanks to help them breathe. They could hold their breath for a long time, and when they needed air, they swam up to the top, or took a breath from an air hose at the back of the tank. After the show was over, one of the mermaids posed for pictures with us.

 



 

Hai asked what kind of plants they have in Florida. Well, one kind that I saw a lot was orange trees.

They are not very tall, so I climbed right up into one. The orange blossoms smelled so good. Do you like to drink orange juice? The juice you have for breakfast probably started from a tree in Florida.

 

 

Here is another plant that I saw. Do you see the long, grayish-green things hanging from the branches of this tall tree?

It is really not a part of the tree at all. It is a plant called Spanish moss. It grows on the tree, and covers up the leaves. It looks pretty, but if a tree has too much Spanish moss, it will die. The tree's leaves have to get sunshine to make food for the tree, and the moss can block the sun.

 

 

We brought back some Spanish moss for you to see and touch. It is an odd plant. It has no roots, no stems, no flowers, and no seeds. It doesn't need soil. It grows on trees, and gets the water it needs from the rain and the air. It is so different from other plants!

 

On Saturday, we went to the beach. There were palm trees  growing in the sand. Aislinn asked what they felt like. The trunks are rough and scratchy.

 

They are not made of wood, like other tree trunks. They are softer, and that lets them bend and not break when the wind blows hard. It also makes them easier to cut. People like to carve them into statues and other decorations. This plant holder was carved from the trunk of a palm tree. I thought that the plant growing on top looked like funny hair.

 

Do you see something dangling down on the right side of the plant? Can you guess what it is?

Florida has some unusual animals, too. While we were at the beach, we saw this big bird on the pier. Do you know its name?

 

                                            It is a pelican. The big beak is for catching fish.

 

   Here's another animal that we saw on the sand. It is called a horseshoe crab. Can you guess why?

 

 

That's right! The shell has the shape of a horseshoe.

 

The trip was a short one, but we had some fun adventures. I am already back home, and happy to be here again. That's all for now, until I take another trip in December.

 

 

Your friend,

Flat Stanley