Memorial Day Activities for Kids

Memorial Day is an important holiday that honors those who have died in warfare. While it often serves as a fun holiday that marks the beginning of summer, it’s actually quite a somber day, especially for those who have fallen service members in their families.

Take some time to talk about the meaning of Memorial Day with kids with these activities.

The Holiday Zone is a great place to start for basic information on the history of Memorial Day and lots of activities including songs, classroom activities, arts and crafts projects, recommended books, discussion questions and more. It even suggests a grade range for different printables and which ones would be appropriate for English language learners.

The Memorial Day word search from Homeschool of 1 gives you a chance to talk with kids about what the different words mean in relation to Memorial Day such as sacrifice, service and honor.

Read these Memorial Day poems at Woo Jr., and then have older kids write their own or talk about how poetry can help us remember loved ones or share stories about people who are no longer with us.

Poppies are a classic symbol of remembrance, particularly in the UK. Make this poppy craft from Nothing But Room while you talk about Memorial Day with your kids.

Combine talking about Memorial Day (or any patriotic holiday) with a little cutting practice with these printables from 3 Boys and a Dog.

Jessica Tobin has a flip book you can download from Teachers Pay Teachers all about Memorial Day that includes a passage to read, comprehension questions and true and false questions.

These Memorial Day color by number worksheets from Leap of Faith Crafting are good for any patriotic holiday and for kids who know their numbers up to 10. Simply Love Printables also has a set of coloring pages that are more specifically on theme for Memorial Day with images of soldiers and words of remembrance.

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Summer Reading Printables and Tips for Parents

The celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe is important throughout Mexico and other parts of the world. Her feast day is Dec. 12, and the celebrations honoring her appearance to Juan Diego in 1531 begin a few days before that.

Whether you celebrate yourself or just want to share about the celebration at home or in your classroom, Las Mañanitas: The Beautiful Celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe is a good place to start. The book, by Ernesto Joel Vega Rosales and Jeanette Gonzalez Seneviratne, with illustrations by Dana Sanmar, tells the story of a family’s celebration of the feast day in both English and Spanish.

They prepare with a novena, which is nine days of prayers and preparations. The children, Lucia and Pablo, are given special outfits made by their grandmother that look like what Juan Diego might have worn when he saw Our Lady. The book describes the prayers that are made each day, such as a prayer for respect for life, for families and for the indigenous people of the Americas, to name a few.

As told in the book, Juan Diego was a native Mexican born near modern day Mexico City. His given name was Cuaauhtlatoatzin, which means “He who speaks like an eagle.” When he converted to Christianity his name was changed to Juan Diego, and as he walked to church he passed a hill called Tepeyac. One day he heard the birds singing especially beautifully and a voice called him to go to the top of the hill.

There he saw Our Lady of Guadalupe, who asked him to tell the bishop she wanted a chapel built in her name at the foot of the hill. The bishop asked for a sign that Juan Diego really saw her, and later she had him collect flowers that she blessed and take them to the bishop. When Juan Diego dropped the flowers, an image of Our Lady could be seen on his cloak, which is still on display in her basilica to this day.

The feast day is celebrated as mañanitas, which includes singing, indigenous music and dancing, and children presenting flowers to Our Lady. Juan Diego is remembered today as being humble, brave and faithful, and was the first indigenous American made a saint.

The book is colorful and tells the story in a clear way, and it’s fun to have it both in English and Spanish if you teach Spanish or speak Spanish at home or in the classroom. It’s a great way to learn the basics of the celebration and the story of Juan Diego and why he is still remembered today.

About the book: 40 pages, paperback, published 2024 by Loyola Press. Suggested retail price $14.99.

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