On Thursday, we were fortunate enough to have the opportunity to Skype with our Quad Blogging buddies, Mrs. Ranney’s class. While we live on the east coast of the United States, they live on the west coast, in California. We were able to learn so much thanks to Mrs. Ranney and her wonderful students.



Thanks to our recorders, Ariel, Natalie, and Mike, as well as the wonderful students of Mrs. Watson’s class, we were able to have great discussions about similarities and differences between the two classes.

Here are just a few things that we learned during our Skype chat:

  • California has an area of about 158,633,000 miles, while Massachusetts has an area of about 10,555 miles.  We learned that California is the third largest state.
  • California has a population of 37,000,000 people!  Massachusetts has about 5,500,000 people.   That means that California has about 31,500,000 more people than Massachusetts!
  • The capitol of California is Sacramento.  The capitol of Massachusetts is Boston.
  • Their town has a population of 23,058 people.  Our town has about 2,600 people.
  • They have 600 students at their school, 120 in their grade, and 22 in class.  We have 230 students in our school, 33 in our grade, and 15 in our class.
  • We live near the Atlantic Ocean.  They live near the Pacific Ocean.
  • Our state mammal is the right whale. Theirs is the California grey whale
  • Our state bird is the black-capped chickadee. Theirs is the valley quail.
  • Our state insect is the ladybug. Theirs is the dog-faced butterfly.
  • Our state tree is the American elm.  Theirs is the redwood.
  • Our state flower is the mayflower.  Theirs is the golden poppy.

We also learned some other interesting facts about them.  They have many references to gold because of the gold rush in the 1800s.  Their state flower is the golden poppy.  Their state colors are gold and blue.  Their state metal is gold.  Their state motto is even, “Eureka! I’ve found it!” to represent those who were lucky enough to strike it rich.

We’re so thankful to Mrs. Ranney and her class for taking the time to chat with us.  We learned so much and hope to Skype with them again soon!


*What was the largest difference between California and Massachusetts?*


*How are Massachusetts and California similar?*


*Have you ever been to California before?*