The first president of the USA
Have you heard anyone recently talking about Barack Obama and John McCain?
They are currently running to be elected as president of the United States of America. Americans "run" for elections. The British "stand" for elections. I wonder why that is.
The election is going to take place at the beginning of November.
Barack Obama is the first African American to be a presidential nominee [NOM-EE-KNEE] for a major party.
The first president of the USA was George Washington. Ask your teacher if they remember George Washington.
The last state to join the Union
America is made up of 50 states. That's why it's called the United States of America. States have their own governments.
Here is an alphabetical list of the first 10 states of America: Alabama; Alaska; Arizona; Arkansas; California; Colorado; Connecticut; Delaware; Florida; Georgia.
Can you find out the names of the other 40 states of the USA?
The last state to join the Union was Hawaii, in 1959. Hawaii is an archipelago (an ARK-E-PEL-AGO). An archipelago is a group of islands.
Hawaii is not even in North America. It's in the Pacific Ocean. So, as they say in America - go figure.
The biggest state in America
The biggest state in America is absolutely huge. And freezing cold. It's Alaska.
Alaska is massively massive. It covers more than 650,000 square miles. Which is twice the size of Texas, which is also massive.
According to the Alaska Department of Natural Resources, Alaska has 3m lakes! But not many people: only 700,000.
Alaska exports mostly oil, gas, salmon, cod and crab. And politicians.
John McCain - remember him up in "the first"? - is running for the presidential election with someone called Sarah Palin (she's his "running mate"). Sarah Palin is the first woman to be chosen as a presidential running mate. She's from Alaska.
The smallest state in America
The smallest state in America is Rhode Island. It's not an island, but it does contains islands. Rhode Island is tiny. It covers just 1,545 square miles.
Even though it's small it has the longest name of all the states of the USA. Its official name is The State of Rhode Island and the Providence Plantations. It's sometimes called the Ocean State (it's by the ocean). Or Little Rhody.
Rhode Island is famous for its gangsters and also for its special hot dogs, called "Hot Wieners" or "New York System Wieners", which are basically mini-hot dogs covered with a meat sauce and onions. Delicious! (Unless you're an American vegetarian).
The best thing about America
It's difficult to judge what's absolutely the best thing about America - I'm not American.
But here are some pretty good things about America: Thanksgiving, the New York Public Library, drive-in cinemas, baseball, The Simpsons, hamburgers, cheeseburgers (not if you're a vegetarian, obviously).
Are you an actual real live American? Were you born in America? Have you lived in America? Is your mum, your dad, your brother, your sister, your uncle, your aunt, or your granny or your grandad American?
If so, email email@example.com and tell us what you think the best thing is.
The worst thing about America
This is even trickier than deciding what's the best thing about America.
I mean, how would you like it if someone came to your town, or your street, or your house and said "I don't like this. I don't like that." You'd be annoyed and upset, right?
Well, it's the same with someone else's country. So I'm not even going to begin to say what's the worst thing about America. Although I must admit I don't like guns and, unlike in the UK, in America it's quite legal to own a gun.