On Fourth of July, friends and families gather across the country to celebrate America’s birthday. Polls have shown that Americans know surprisingly little about U.S. history. Take time to make sure your kids know all about Independence Day.
As we all get together for the holiday, what better time to gather the family and enjoy an activity or two to freshen up on our great nation’s heritage.
Whether you are a homeschooling family or not, these 10 Fourth of July activities will help your family prepare for the big day.
Read together
Start out by reading the Declaration of Independence. For kids who are too young to understand the concepts, consider books that talk about freedom and Independence Day, such asF is for Flag and The Story of America’s Birthday.
Examine the Declaration of Independence
Parents and kids can use this lesson plan to examine the Declaration of Independence and learn about its significance in American history.
Use unit studies
Complete a 4th of July Montessori Unit Study. This complete unit study features Pre-K and K-10 articles, hands-on activities and other exercises that are compatible with the Montessori method of schooling.
Get printables
SchoolExpress offers 24 pages of fun 4th of July printables which include math, writing, coloring and puzzles.
Try this preschool lesson
This complete 4th of July preschool lesson features a free downloadable file that includes a variety of activities: Size sorting, F is for fireworks, beginning writing/cutting practice, size sequencing, patterns, spelling, counting clips cards and much more.
Learn about historical places
These comprehensive materials from Teaching with Historic Places (TwHP) feature lesson plans related to America’s battle for independence, the creation of our nation and other lessons with related Independence Day themes.
Make a timeline
Create a timeline of the most important events leading up to the Declaration of Independence and the writing of the Constitution.
Learn about the flag
Study the timeline history of the American flag from Holidays.net.
Make a map
Learn more about the founding of our nation via a virtual tour of Philadelphia.
Learn “The Star-Spangled Banner”
In recent years, we have come to find out that there are many people (both adults and kids) that do not know the words to our country’s national anthem. Scholastic has set up a neat lesson plan to help your child learn the words and their meaning.
I hope some of the ideas above will help bring some meaning to your 4th of July celebrations. When we see the Declaration of Independence, sing our national anthem or yell out “Happy Birthday America,” we will remember the courage it took for men to stand up for what they knew was right — independence!
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