Lesson Plan

Title: Veterans Day

Grade: 1st

Concept/Topic: Veterans Day

Time Needed: 30-45 minutes

Identify desired results/learning outcomes/essential questions

Essential Questions:
-What is a veteran?
-Do you know any veterans?
-Why is important to thank them?
-How can we thank them?
-What does it mean to serve your country?

Learning Outcomes:
-Students will know what veterans day is
-Students will know the importance of veterans
-Students will know how to reciprocate kindness to everyone
-Students will know how important our service members are

NCSCOS Standards:
CCSS.ELA- Literacy.RL.1.1 Ask and answer questions about key details in a text.

CCSS.ELA- Literacy.RL.1.2 Retell stories, including key details, and demonstrate understanding
of their central message or lesson.

CCSS.ELA- Literacy.RL.1.3 Describe characters, setting, and major events in story, using key
details

Assessment Plans:
We will know if the objectives have been met if the students can explain what veterans day is
and why we celebrate it. We will see their thank you cards to our veterans. The big ideas will
be known to us when the students understand the importance of saying thank you.
Prior Knowledge/Connections:
Students will know that they have school off for this holiday. This will connect with other things
that they have learned because they are currently learning about holidays and what they each
mean.

Lesson Introduction/Hook:
We will start the lesson by asking the students why they have Friday (November 11) off from
school. This will help them to realize that it is a holiday and it should excite them because they
have school off.

Differentiation/Same-ation:
This one lesson ensures engagement for all students by showing that we all play a part in our
country. This lesson is accessible to all students because students all see members of our/their
community in uniform and will know to thank them for their service. We want the students to be
able to identify people in uniform and to know what services they contribute to help us have our
freedom.

Lesson Development:
1. We will ask the students why they have November 11th off from school.
2. We will tell them that it is Veterans Day.
3. We will read the book Veteranss Day by Rebecca Pettiford aloud to them.
a. We will ask questions during the book.
i. When is Veterans Day?
ii. Do you see anyone wearing this uniform around you?
iii. Why do we thank our veterans?
iv. How do we show that we love our country?
v. Why does someone get a medal?
4. We will describe to them what we are doing.
a. Making cards to veterans
b. Fumi, Deena, and Leighton will take the cards to veterans
5. We will have them make their own cards to veterans.
6. When we take the cards, we will take pictures of us with the veterans/employees mailing
them out.
7. At a later date, we will show them the picture.

Specific Questioning:
What does it mean to be a Veteran?
Do you know any Veterans?
Why do we celebrate Veterans Day?
When is Veterans Day?
 Do you see anyone wearing this uniform around you?
Why do we thank our veterans?
How do we show that we love our country?
Why does someone get a medal?

New Vocabulary:
Armed Forces- Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Coast Guard, National Guards, etc.
Brave- Showing courage.
Flag- A symbol of a country.
Soldier- A person who serves in the Armed Forces
Veteran- A person who has served in the Armed Forces in the past.
Uniform- What a soldier wears during combat.

Concluding the Lesson/Closure/Debriefing:

To close the lesson, we will discuss with them that you say thank you when someone does
something to you. We will also tell them about how much a card from a stranger will mean to the
veterans.

Materials/Resources:
Veterans Day by Rebecca Pettiford
Paper
Markers

Teaching Behavior Focus:

Call on different kids than the ones that are usually called on to answer questions.

Follow-Up Activities/Parent Involvement:

Parents/guardians could take kids to a celebration about Veterans Day.
Parents/guardians could take kids to the cemetery to place flowers/cards/flags on the
grave stones.
Kids could say thank you to people in uniform when they see them.