Ways to Celebrate Memorial Day as a Family

Memorial Day is a national holiday that is always observed on the last Monday of May. On this holiday we honor the lives of men and women who died serving in the U.S. Military. Many families enjoy taking this time to celebrate memorial day with a long weekend of family time, parades and celebrations.

Memorial Day

Memorial Day is a day of remembrance and mourning of the ultimate sacrifice that men and women took in defense of our country. There is so much history surrounding this national holiday that you and your children may be interested in learning about Memorial Day.

What is the History of Memorial Day?

Observing Memorial Day in the United States began with the end of the Civil War in the late 1800s. Over 622,000 soldiers from the northern states and southern states had died.

The government created national cemeteries for the Union fallen. Various towns and cities all across the country began to establish cemeteries for the dead.

So many lives were lost and people needed to mourn. They began to come and mourn at these cemeteries. Flowers were placed on the graves of soldiers and prayers and memorial services were held. These were some of the earliest memorial day commemorations.

Arlington National Cemetery

This official federal holiday is recognized with an annual event at the Arlington National Cemetery for the U.S. Military and family members. This is where the president lays a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, followed by a speech.

The first time this was done was  in Arlington on May 30th in 1868 by proclamation of General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic.

He encouraged family members and Americans to decorate the graves of the dead. This was the first Memorial Day and was known as Decoration Day.

When did Memorial Day become an official holiday?

In 1968, Congress created a three-day weekend encompassing Memorial Day through the Uniform Monday Holiday Act.

After America became involved in Word War 1 the tradition spread to remember those that were killed in all of the wars. It was not recognized as an official holiday until the 70s with the Vietnam War. It became an official federal holiday in 1971.

What are 5 ways people celebrate Memorial Day?

• Decorate graves – It is a tradition to decorate the graves of fallen soldiers with small American flags. Many families will find a local veteran cemetery to visit and decorate the graves in their local community.
• Attend a ceremony or Memorial Day celebration. Many towns and cities have memorial day ceremonies that you can attend that will honor local military families with names and a moment of silence.
• Wear a red poppy as a symbol of remembrance. A poem titled In Flanders Fields was written to give a voice to soldiers that had died and described the red poppies that started blooming through a large battlefield.
• Attend a Memorial Day Parade. This is a great way to show pride in your country and to gather together with those in your community.
• Have a BBQ or cook out with family and friends at your home. If you have family members that are veterans they may want to gather with their veteran friends to remember those they knew who lost their lives.
• Do some easy Memorial Day crafts with your kids, and talk about the importance of remembering the fallen. 

Memorial Day Activities

There are lots of other ways to participate in Memorial Day with your family. It is not just all parades and celebrations. It is a sacred holiday and important to explain to our children that this is a day of remembrance.

National Moment of Remembrance

A great way to express this with your children is by taking part in the National Moment of Remembrance. This moment asks everyone to stop and pause for 1 minute in an act of national unity wherever we are at 3 PM local time on Memorial Day.

Learning Activities for Memorial Day

We also enjoy doing unit studies about holidays and incorporating free printables and activities into our homeschool studies leading up to Memorial Day. Teach your kids about this important holiday with lots of activities, ideas and free printables for learning about Memorial Day.

In Conclusion