MICRONATIONS: Invent Your Own Country and Culture with 25 Projects

Description

For anyone who's ever dreamed of ruling over their own empire, here's your chance! Micronations are imaginary countries that have a lot of the same things as real ones: laws, customs, history, and their own flags, coins, and postage stamps. "Micronations: Invent Your Own Country and Culture" takes readers step-by-step to create their own unique realm, using examples from real nations, micronations, and fictional lands. What makes a country a country? What symbols and systems define a country and help it function? Learn about geography and government, technology and the environment, art and culture, and the literary device of "world-building" used in works like "The Hobbit" and "Harry Potter." Activities show readers how to create authentic-looking artifacts and documents such as maps, currency, passports, a declaration of independence, and a constitution. Kids get to invent their own language, music, games, clothing, food, and holidays to fit their micronation's tradition. Whether they create a land of time travel where every city exists in a different epoch or an underwater monarchy (motto: "Bubbles, bubbles and more bubbles") whose chief export is fish, "Micronations: Invent Your Own Country and Culture" will engage kids' imagination and teach make-believe rulers how the real world works.

Kathy Ceceri is a Senior Editor for Wired.com's GeekMom blog and a longtime contributor to the GeekDad blog. She writes educational activity books that combine science with history and art, as well as features on parenting, family travel, and crafts for newspapers and magazines. Kathy lives in Schuylerville, NY. Chad Thompson has been drawing cartoons since childhood. He is a graduate of Columbus College of Art and Design and worked at Walt Disney Feature Animation studio in Florida animating movies for several years. In addition to animation, Chad does illustration and design work for a variety of clients. Chad lives in Kissimmee, FL.

Micronations Invent Your Own Country and Culture Library Media Connection "...This book would be useful in a Social Studies class that was studying government. As the various sections are described there are comparisons to the United States and other countries. Recommended" Momma's Bacon "...Think you could make your own country and culture? It's not as easy as you think! The 25 fun projects in this book not only help children learn about why rules and regulations are important in a society, it also shows them how they can be created. Brilliant!" Charlotte's Library "... Ceceri walks kids through all the things that go into making a modern country--the physical features of the land, the basics of government and economy, the symbolic elements of nation building, and more. Generously interspersed with matter of fact discussions of such topics are interesting facts and activities (which seem entertaining, do-able, and useful), and I must say that I loved the interesting facts very much! ... very much worth using in an educational setting, and even worth giving in a more casual way to your kid at home who has a penchant for social studies trivia!" Bookloons "This book offers a creative way to teach older children how governments function and why geography, civics and economics are important. The 25 hands-on projects and activities show the reader how to create authentic looking maps, currency, passports, and even a constitution ... a very useful guide for creating some fun and informative units on civics and related subjects." Katrinka Somdahl-Sands, Assistant Professor of Geography and Environment, Rowan University "Micronations is a fun and informative text, good for teachers and their students. It teaches geography, civics, and economics in an engaging manner kids will enjoy. The activities support the learning goals and are varied enough to appeal to many different learning styles. I am now thinking about how I could adapt this 'kids' book for my college-level political geography course!" Seth Dixon, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Rhode Island College "A delightful resource to help students understand all the inner workings of a country. Micronations combines free-flowing creativity with a structure and real-world applicability that will make the knowledge meaningful. This hands-on, creative approach will capture imaginations and is destined to make geography come alive for countless children." His Excellency President Kevin Baugh, Republic of Molossia "Micronations: Invent Your Own Country and Culture is a great book, very entertaining and informative. It's a fun read and a great resource for anyone, young and old, who would like to start their own micronation--and I should know, I've been doing running my own micronation for 36 years!" Praise for other titles by Kathy Ceceri: Robotics: Discover the Science and Technology of the Future with 20 Projects Publisher's Weekly "Ceceri's cartoon-illustrated activity book, an addition to the Build It Yourself series, introduces readers to robotics, with information on its history, different robot technologies, and the evolution of the field... Light in tone but dense with information, this guide should appeal to those who already have a strong interest in the topic and are ready for a hands-on challenge." World Myths and Legends: 25 Fascinating Projects You Can Build Yourself GEEKDAD Wired Magazine "World Myths and Legends can quickly become a favorite due to it being about some of the most exciting and fantastical stories in existence. I've had this book for several weeks and we're not even 25% into completing the crafts... I haven't seen my nine year old excited about a book like this for a while."