Memorial Day

Memorial day is traditionally observed on the last Monday of May.  Usually by this time schools are out or they are closed in observance of the holiday.  This year, for the first time in recent memory, Florida schools are not going to be out for the summer on Memorial Day.  However, schools, in my county at least, are closed for the day.  A great lesson for the day after the holiday for any civics, social studies, or history class would be one on Memorial Day.

A Brief History of Memorial Day

Long before it was an officially recognized holiday, women were leaving memorial flowers on the graves of fallen soldiers.  The first official proclamation of Memorial Day was on May 5,  1968.  It was then observed on May 30th with the placing of flowers on the graves on Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington.  The holiday was only observed in the Northern states until after World War I.  Up until then the Southern states observed their remembrance of fallen Civil War soldiers on a separate day.  With the National Holiday Act of 1971 the last Monday in May became the national day to celebrate soldiers who gave their lives for our country.

How to Observe Memorial Day

• Visit Cemeteries
• Visit Memorials
• Place flowers and flags on the graves of veterans.
• Help the widows and children of veterans

Online Memorial Day Activities - Most of these you can print out and use in the classroom.

• Easy Memorial Day Crossword Puzzle
• Harder Memorial Day Crossword Puzzle
• Memorial Day Logic Puzzle
• Memorial Day Word Search
• Memorial Day Worksheets and Lesson Plans

Please spend a few moments this Memorial Day to remember the brave soldiers that have fought to keep our country free.  If any of you are in the military now or have a loved one in the military, thank you for all you do.

How are you going to spend Memorial Day?  Do you have an activity or lesson you like to use on Memorial Day?

Memorial Day Photo Credit:  Randy Son of Robert from Flickr, Creative Commons License