Remembrance Day and Veterans Day follow an exciting spooky season. Now, our attention turns to something more serious and important in our lives. It is now that we take the time to remember and honor our members of the military who served in the wars and continue to serve today. In Canada and Australia, it is also a day to remember those we have lost through their service.
In Canada and Australia, November 11th is called Remembrance Day and the focus is on remembering those that served in the wars and died for our freedom. It is often difficult to teach this concept to little ones when they weren’t there. I usually speak about “keeping the memory alive”. Just how can you do that?
Helping Children “Remember” When They Weren’t There
Several years ago, I taught a lesson with a great book and art project click here. I incorporated topics of peace and how students can be the ones to spread kindness. This book is so good at explaining the war and the father going away. It is also a bit sad as is life sometimes, but kids are very engaged in learning. To help teachers use this book to teach more about the war, I created a book unit. It is very useful to have these deep topics broken down into small pieces for students to understand.
By putting it all together in this lap book, students can learn about the history of Remembrance Day or Veterans Day and compile all of this learning into one place. It’s a wonderful and easy-to-put-together visual display and representation of learning. It’s also a great keepsake for students.

In the USA, November 11th is Veterans Day. This day, (unlike Memorial Day which is more like Canada’s and Australia’s Remembrance Day) is a day to honour those that continue to serve. Of course, no one could forget those that came before us. It is, for this reason, I decided to put 2 options in the upper right corner depending on your focus: Why Lay a Wreath? and Country Pride. (You could probably use both and put one on the back.)

I love learning about different countries and their histories and customs and love that November 11th is a great day to feel grateful for all we have and continue to have and promote this understanding and gratitude with our students.
We are all truly blessed.
These are both great ideas! I'm going to pin them to my Fall board so other teachers can find them as well. Thank you! And thank you for linking up as well!
~Heather aka HoJo~
Hi Heather,
Thank you so much. My students love lap books and it makes it so easy to teach when kids are engaged!
Shelley