Hi Patrick Quan and 3rd graders,
Wow, I was lucky. I got mailed to Wisconsin in the Midwest Region of the U.S. I learned that Wisconsin has lots of cool features and history. Let me tell you some of the things that I learned.
Right now, it's spring in Wisconsin, and it was pretty rainy, but daffodils and tulips were starting to pop through the dirt. Next is summer, then fall, and finally winter when I hear they sometimes get 18 inches of snow in a day! Yikes!
30,000 years ago, glaciers covered two-thirds of Wisconsin. The glacier smashed, scraped or buried almost everything in its path. Its grinding movement, along with the water that rushed from it as it melted, created thousands of lakes and rivers, gently rolling hills and exotic rock formations like the Wisconsin Dells. It has large forests, small farmsteads, winding rivers and 15,000 lakes. Crops.....cranberries are a popular crop here, along with corn, wheat, and cherries. Wisconsin is known as American's Dairyland. Also, cheesemakers here make 300 different varieties of cheese, and in the spring, people tap maple trees so they can make maple syrup. I visited mostly in the southeast part of Wisconsin. The eastern side of Wisconsin is bordered by Lake Michigan, one of the “great lakes”. Wow, that's a lot of water.
Wisconsin has been home to many Native American cultures including the Ojibwe, Ho-Chunk, Sioux, and Potawatomi. The Ringling family circus got its start in Wisconsin in 1884. It kept growing and became known as the “Greatest Show on Earth”.
Wisconsin has some awesome industries, too. Kimberly & Clark Company in Neenah made the world's first facial tissue. Harley Davidson was my favorite stop. Vroom, vroom, don't worry, I wore my helmet on my test ride. I also went to the Milwaukee Zoo. People say it is one of the best in the nation, and was one of the first zoos to do away with small cages, and let the animals roam freely. I really wanted to swim with the penguins, but then you would have had to iron me.
Today is opening day at Miller Park where the Milwaukee Brewers play. Patrick, I know you have been to that ballpark, and that your dad grew up in Wisconsin. But did you know that this year they have a brand new scoreboard. It's GIGANTIC! You can see it from all over the stadium. Maybe your class has heard of our football team too. The Green Bay Packers play at Lambeau Field and were the Super Bowl winners this year. Go Pack!
By the way, Earth day is coming up on April 22. Wisconsin's Senator Gaylord Nelson wanted people to understand that we needed to take better care of the planet, so in 1970 he started “Earth Day”.
All I can say is Wisconsin is full of friendly people, great food, lots of recreation, and I can't wait to come back.
See you soon,
Flat Stanley & his pal, Bill Luedke (from Hales Corners, WI)
