Some quick activities to make the 4th special

ADDED July 03, 2009

 John Adams wrote to his wife Abigail about the celebration of American Independence: "It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more."

He was right; the Fourth of July is a time to celebrate all that makes America great.  Today we suggest you and your kids take the suggestions from Mr. Adams (a key player in Founding Fathers tag) and do each in your home.  We suggest you "solemnize" the day with:

Pomp and parade.  Fourth of July parades are great fun (and they're also free.)  If there's not one happening in your area . . . have your own!  Have the kids dress in red, white, and blue.  Have them march and wave flags.  A little patriotic music would probably help things, too.

Shows.  Encourage the little stars in your home to put on a show featuring American History.  They should use puppets or costumes.  If they want, they can use the "History of the Fourth of July" as a starting place, and explain that to their audience.

Games.  This doesn't need any explanation.  Family games are fun.  Use the holiday to take some out and play!

Sports.  Badminton, horseshoes, croquet or blind man's bluff are all classic, old-timey, games, that are fun for kids and parents alike.

Guns.    This was a good idea in 1776.  Not so much now.

Bells.  Do you have any bells in the house?  Sleigh bells from Christmas or bicycle bells are fair game.  Explain to your kids that in olden days, people would ring church bells as a way of letting everyone in the vicinity know about big news.  Bells were rung, for instance, after the Declaration of Independence was signed. If you have a bell handy, let the kids ring it.  America's two hundred and thirty-third birthday is big news!

Bonfires.  We think a barbecue would be a modern day equivalent.  A beach bonfire would work, too.

Illuminations.  Of course, fireworks shows are fun and free so if your kids can stay up, visit a local fireworks show.

And President Adams didn't say this explicitly, but of course, the Fourth is a great holiday to spend with people you love!  So do it!

Have a great Fourth -- from TIF!

good at home, good for a group, see our disclaimer,

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Three breakfasts -- all patriotic!

ADDED July 02, 2009

good at home, no 'props' needed, see our disclaimer,

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An easy and fun Fourth of July activity

ADDED July 01, 2009

This one is so easy and so much of a "no-brainer" that we hope you don't angrily storm off or demand your money back.

But sometimes, a simple concept is good!  And how's this for simplicity:  you give your kids some red, white, and blue construction paper and ask them to create a Fourth of July decoration.  Have them cut shapes out with scissors.  Have some glue handy, too.

That's it!  That's all you need to do for this one.

The underlying idea here is that red, white, and blue are America's colors.  If your kids make a decoration with those three colors, it is bound to be patriotic and festive.  You can't really beat red, white and blue!

Here are some quick variations:

Holiday activity,

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They gave us Independence, let's give them a game!

ADDED June 30, 2009

 Yesterday, we were talking with our kids about the 4th of July and the story behind this most festive of holidays.  We mentioned the "Bad Guy" King George III, but didn't mention the "Good Guys" -- the heroes of early American history. To help your kids become familiar with a few of the fifty-six delegates (because fifty-six is a lot) who signed the Declaration of Independence, we present "Founding Fathers Tag."  It is a simple way to bring educational American History fun into your kids' lives (and don't worry there won't be a test.)

Here is how you play: the person who is "it" is called a "Red Coat," and as in traditional tag, they have to tag the people who are not "it."  If you get tagged by the "Red Coat" you have to freeze.  You can only be released if a player who is not a "Red Coat" tags you and calls out the name of one of the Founding Fathers.  For example, Alexander Hamilton, George Washington or Thomas Jefferson. 

Before you start playing "Founding Fathers" tag take a few minutes to review some of the key players in early American history. We have also added some little known facts that will make "Founding Fathers" fun.  Don'f forget to show your kids the pictures -- nothing makes history come alive like a painting and nothing says fast like a powdered wig.

 

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• Benjamin Franklin

 

a famous scientist, inventor and his picture is on the $100 dollar bill, also known for his quick lateral moves when avoiding "Red Coats"

 

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• George Washington

 

1st President of the United States and his picture is on the $1 dollar bill, very and skilled in releasing frozen players

 

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• John Adams

2nd President of the United States, built the US Navy, known to employ the use of water-balloons in tag. 

 

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• Thomas Jefferson

3rd President of the United States, author of the Declaration of Independence, a skilled spy.

 

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• John Jay

1st Chief Justice of the United States, skilled at avoiding detection during tag.

 

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• James Madison

4th President of the United States, some people call him fast feet. 

 

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• Alexander Hamilton 

founded the US Mint and his picture is on the $10 dollar bill, skilled at tricks and deception to avoid being tagged.

That's it.  Simple historical fun!

 

All photos from wikipedia.com

ages 5 and above, good for a group, see our disclaimer, summer activity,

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Explaining America's holiday to young kids

ADDED June 29, 2009

The Fourth of July (coming to a town near you this Saturday) is a very special holiday -- and frankly, it's one of our favorites.  The United States is a great place, and we should all be grateful to live here.  And we should all celebrate America!

It's tricky to explain Fourth of July to young kids -- those who haven't yet reached the second or third grades.  But as always, we have some ideas.  Here's how we explain the significance of the Fourth of July to young children:

First, we say that the Fourth is the day, back in olden days, that America became its own country.

(We use "olden days" to convey any event in the distant past.  To a kid, this is pretty much anything that occurred before they were born.  We don't think young children can really distinguish between thirty years before they were born and three hundred years.  To them, it's all just long ago, or -- if you will -- "olden days.")

So, in olden days, America was owned by England.  The boss of England was King George the Third.  Because England owned America, King George the Third was also the boss of America.

King George and his helpers in England did not treat America well.  They wanted to take as much money as they could from the people in America, so they could spend that money themselves.

(I have a little activity to help the kids understood how the American colonists might have felt in the face of Britain's excessive taxation.  I give them five pennies -- usually I try to give them very shiny pennies, I think it helps.  I say, "These are your pennies.  Can you count them?"  When they're done, I say, "Okay, the King of England told me to take some of your pennies for him."  And then I take two away.  The first time I did that, my son was clearly unhappy and disappointed. He said, "Give those back!")

The people living in America did not like that King George and his helpers took their money.  The Americans also wanted to be in control of their own rules, instead of having England make them up.  So on July 4, 1776, a group of American leaders agreed that America should be its own country from then on.

That's why the Fourth of July is America's birthday.  That is why it's such a special day: because in olden days, the Fourth of July was the day Americans decided to be their own, separate country.

The story continues:

King George still wanted America to do what he commanded.  He sent a lot of his helpers over to America in boats.  These helpers were soldiers, and they were called the Red Coats because they wore . . . red coats.   The soldiers tried to make the American people do whatever King George the Third wanted them to do.  The Americans certainly didn't like this, and they fought the soldiers.

The Americans were very brave, because King George and the Red Coats were very powerful.  Many people did not think that the Americans could win against the Red Coats.

After a really long time -- six years, longer than many kids have been alive -- and with the help of some soldiers from France, the American people won.  They got to have their own country!

Of course, the King George the Third and the people from England were not happy about losing.  But . . . that was a long time ago, and now the United States and England are very, very good friends.  

We hope this version of America's beginning will make sense to your kids, and that it will give them an impression of why the Fourth of July is an important, special day.  Will this story make sense to your little ones?  

We might write a book about explaining history to very young kids, with pages like this.  What do you think?  Should we do it?

educational,

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