Host an Independence Day Celebration!

I remember...just a few days post-911, I was wandering around Boston alone, looking for peace, when I stumbled upon an impromptu performance by Lee Greenwood near the State House. Two songs in, he began to play 'God Bless the USA,' and an amazing thing happened. All of these strangers began to sing together. For four minutes, we were not passers-by on the city streets, bitter and torn from the recent tragedy - everyone joined as one. It was pretty amazing...

Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could act like our founding fathers did, working through these differences to find a common middle ground? You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one... (John Lennon)

Here are some ideas to celebrate America's birthday with your family this 4th of July. (Trivia : The Declaration of Independence was completed and signed on July 2nd, but they didn't get around to a public reading until July 4th.**)

• To the Future, Ben Franklin!
• Thirteen Colonies unit
• Declaration of Independence study
• Writing the Constitution lapbook 
• United States lapbook 
• US Government "test"
• July 4th word search 
• America's flags 
• Uncle Sam & Old Glory : Symbols of America
• Take a virtual field trip to Washington DC on the Fourth of July
• Make a flag cake or a flag pizza to serve at your local cookout.
• Let the kids decorate with Patriotic Pinwheels, Windsocks, and Strings of Stars.  
• They can also create their own fireworks, safely.
• Liberty's Kids is a series, by PBS, about what our founding fathers and our people went through to become the United States of America.  
• It's a children's show, but fun for parents, too.  If you're looking for an easy, enjoyable way to teach about colonial life & the Revolution, I recommend it.