Imagine The Polar Express, except it’s filled with ghoulish characters and visits places throughout Virginia. That’s what you get with The Spooky Express Virginia: A Halloween Thrill Ride by Eric James! This fun picture book makes teaching Virginia geography in October a breeze. With this book, you can easily cover the Virginia Studies SOLs amidst the Halloween excitement and chaos.
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About The Spooky Express Virginia
In The Spooky Express Virginia, a group of trick-or-treaters boards a magical train filled with mummies, werewolves, and vampires. The train travels throughout Virginia on Halloween night, visiting famous sites and cities along the way. But, it isn’t all fun and games. At one point, the trick-or-treaters must work together to save the spooky train.
Throughout the story, the train visits around 20 places in Virginia. Some cities visited include Arlington, Roanoke, Charlottesville, and Richmond. The train also glides past Monticello, swims in the James River, and passes through Luray Caverns. In addition to exploring Virginia geography through the story and illustrations, students also see symbols of Virginia, including the state flag.
What makes this a great read aloud for upper elementary students is that it is fun and has colorful, inviting pictures while still covering the Virginia Studies SOLs. It truly is the perfect tool for teaching Virginia geography in October!
Teaching Virginia Geography with The Spooky Express
The Spooky Express Virginia provides lots of easy opportunities for teaching Virginia geography and regions. I listed a few of my favorite activities to use with the picture book below. You can use all of the activities or select the ones that work best for your classroom.
Review Virginia Geography and Regions
There are SO many Virginia cities and places listed throughout The Spooky Express Virginia. As you read, make a list of all the places mentioned or shown in the illustrations. After reading, have students identity each place on a map of Virginia. Discuss which region each place is located in.
You can also discuss the significance of certain cities and places as they relate to the Virginia Studies SOLs. For example, Charlottesville is where Monticello (Thomas Jefferson’s home) is located, and President Woodrow Wilson was born in Staunton.
Design a Virginia Train
The picture book tells of a train called The Spooky Express and all of the colorful characters who ride and work on the train. Instruct students to design a Virginia train. Some of the components they should consider include–
- Who is the conductor? It can be any Virginian (living or dead), but they need to explain why they would be a good conductor.
- Who would be the engineer? It can be any Virginian (living or dead), but they need to explain why they would be a good engineer.
- What is the train’s name? It should describe the geography and/or history of Virginia.
- What will the train look like? Students should consider ways to incorporate Virginia’s geography and/or history into their design.
- Who are the passengers?
Create a Train Route Through Virginia
In The Spooky Express Virginia, there is a train with several stops throughout Virginia. Students should create the route that their Virginia train will travel. The route should have five to ten stops with at least one stop in each region. Encourage students to select different stops from what is used in the book.
Plot the Route on a Virginia Map
After students have planned their route, they should plot each of the train stops on a map of Virginia. They can create physical maps or use a digital tool such as Google My Maps to create a digital map.
More Ideas for Teaching Virginia Geography in October
The Spooky Express Virginia is not the only Halloween-themed picture book about Virginia. I’ve listed more of my favorite books and activities to use as part of your October Virginia Studies lessons in the blog posts below.
I’ve also compiled all of my favorite Virginia picture books and accompanying lessons for October into one MEGA blog post.
You can also use the following blog posts to find more fun picture books about Virginia and activities to use throughout the year.
- Virginia Studies Picture Books and Lessons for Spring
- Virginia Studies Picture Books and Lessons for December
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