Veterans Day in the classroom

Veterans Day is commemorated each year, and it's a good idea for educators to teach their students about
the day and what it celebrates, before it rolls around on November 11. Students sometimes find themselves acknowledging a day or a month of a year they know nothing about, so I've come up with some ideas to get students in the know for Veterans Day next week.

What is Veterans Day?
This is an important start to teaching your class about why they'll be commemorating the day.

Students are inquisitive and they'll want to know all about Veterans Day once it has been brought up in class.
So,the Department of Veterans Affairs website is a good place to start, with resources for teachers that will inform your students about the beginnings of the day and why we celebrate it now: http:/www1.va.gov/opa/vetsday/vetdayhistory.asp
The website also provides free downloadable worksheets for students in all grades: http://www1.va.gov/opa/vetsday/schoolkit.asp

Once your students understand what Veterans Day is, you might like to engage them in activities that will broaden their understanding of the day.

Time Line: Your students will enjoy learning all about Veterans Day if you explain the series of events leading up to Armistice Day (Veterans Day), and get your students to make their own time lines of the events, explaining what took place, in their own words.

Veterans Day Newspaper: A great way for students to learn more about the day and the commemorations around the world, is for them to make a classroom newspaper. Students can research other countries that celebrate their veterans on November 11, and write articles to produce a class newspaper.
Other countries which call it by a different name, but commemorate November 11 include: Australia, Canada, UK, France and Belgium.

Inviting a Veteran to your classroom: This is an excellent opportunity for students to learn more about why Veterans Day is celebrated. Veterans can inform your class about their personal experiences while serving their country and students will be able to develop a greater understanding of Veterans Day because of this.
Students may also like to research family members who have served in the military, and bring their findings to class to share.

Other great sites that you might want to use to educate your students about Veterans Day: http://abcteach.com/free/r/rc_veteransday_elem.pdf
http://www.thepotters.com/puzzles/veterans.html

Written by Rachel Oakley

Educational Writer for Gigglepotz.com