Memorial Day Activities and Patriotic Projects

I would like to start off by saying thank you to all of the military families past and present. I have so much respect for all of the men and woman who serve our country.

In honor of Memorial Day my children and I have been doing a few patriotic projects. We planted some "patriotic" flowers in the yard and have been doing our annual red, white and blue decorating. We've also enjoyed a few art projects and a simple, healthy and yummy patriotic snack. I would love to share some of our ideas with you. These simple projects would be perfect to do at home or in a classroom or daycare setting.

Patriotic Straw Painting:
I added some water and liquid soap (my trick to help paint wash off easier) to a small bowl of red paint, a bowl of white paint and a bowl of blue paint. I wanted the paint to be a runny consistency. I gave my children paint brushes, construction paper and straws. I demonstrated how to splatter paint onto construction paper and then I instructed them to aim their straws at the splattered paint on the paper and blow the paint around the paper (being careful not to suck in any paint).

Hand Print Flags:
I used red, white and blue paint to paint the palms of my children's hands like a flag. I alternated red and white paint on their fingers, painted a small blue square in the corner of their hand (across form the thumb) and I painted their thumbs blue (white would look nice too). When finished, they pressed their hands onto a small piece of construction paper and then placed a star inside of the blue square on their hand print. The end result was a sweet little hand print flag.

Patriotic Painting with Brushes:
I gave my kids blue construction paper along with red and white tempera paint and just let them paint however they chose. I did the same with red construction paper, blue and white paint. The end result was red, white and blue creative artwork.

Fancy Patriotic Parfait:
My children helped make a healthy fruit parfait by slicing bananas and strawberries with a plastic knife. I used their prepared fruit to make parfaits. I used some champagne glasses to make the parfaits a little more fun and fancy. We layered vanilla yogurt, blueberries, bananas and strawberries. I ended with a dollop of yogurt on top sprinkled with a few more blueberries. This was an was an easy, healthy and fun snack that my kids loved.

Some other ways to celebrate Memorial Day and be patriotic:

Go watch a parade with your family. Many cities and towns host Memorial Day parades.
Wear red, white and blue clothing.
Invite some friends, neighbors or family members over for a back yard barbecue.
Enjoy spending time with your family.
Fly an American Flag
Make cards for Veterans and drop them off at a nearby Home for Veterans if you have one in your area.
Make sure to say thank you to anyone you know who serves or has served in our military.
Visit a Veterans Memorial if you have one nearby.
Do a random act of kindness for a Veteran or Veteran family. Some ideas could be weeding, raking leaves, mowing a lawn or even dropping off a homemade treat or card to show gratitude.
Pray for the men and women who serve our country and all of the families associated with them.