Veterans Day Book and Video List

Sometimes understanding what Veterans Day is all about can be difficult for young ones.  Read alouds and videos are perfect in a virtual or traditional setting for introducing firsties to new information. I've compiled a list of some of my favorite  Veterans Day books and videos to help stock your classroom library.

Veterans Day Books

VETERANS HEROES IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD 

What's it about?  Veterans: Heroes in Our Neighborhood is an engaging rhyming picture book for readers of all ages that fosters mindfulness of and appreciation for the brave service men and women who are also our family, friends, and neighbors.  These are the men and women who bravely served our great country and now humbly serve in our communities.

THE POPPY LADY

What's it about? When American soldiers entered World War I, Moina Belle Michael, a schoolteacher from Georgia, knew she had to act. Some of the soldiers were her students and friends. Almost single-handedly, Moina worked to establish the red poppy as the symbol to honor and remember soldiers. And she devoted the rest of her life to making sure the symbol would last forever. Thanks to her hard work, that symbol remains strong today. Author Barbara Elizabeth Walsh and artist Layne Johnson worked with experts, primary documents, and Moina's great-nieces to better understand Moina's determination to honor the war veterans.

****Pair this book with the directed drawing video below for a lesson on the meaning of poppies and our veterans. Huge confession:  I was never taught about poppies and didn't learn about this special symbol until I was an adult!  Let's teach our firsties and carry on the tradition early in life!

H IS FOR HONOR

What's it About? Written by the son of a career officer, this book explores the branches of the Armed Services and speaks from the heart about the honor, privileges and sacrifices of military families everywhere. Children will discover why drill sergeants have to be so tough, what it means to be patriotic and why we need Special Forces such as the Navy SEALS, the Green Berets and the Army Rangers. H is for Honor also explains why the annual Army/Navy football game is more than just a game, how much letters from home mean to soldiers, how often military families have to move and what life on base is like. With an underlying message of courage and commitment that every child can relate to, the book will be especially meaningful to those whose parents, siblings or other relatives serve in the Armed Forces.

GRANDDAD BUD

What's it about? When a young boy's great-grandfather comes to his school to talk about Veterans Day, the boy is unsure what to expect. Why exactly do we celebrate Veterans Day - and will his classmates be interested in what Granddad Bud has to say?

HERO MOM

What's it about?  The moms in the book are superheroes. They may not leap over tall buildings, and they may not have super-human speed. But these moms construct buildings, fly planes, and make tanks roll. They do all kinds of things to help create a safer world. These superheroes are moms. Military moms. Hero moms.

HERO DAD

What's it about?  A boy compares his father, a U.S. soldier, to a superhero. 

THE WALL

What's it about?  

A young boy and his father visit the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. 

Veterans Day Videos 

Veterans Day by Kid History

Sesame Street Veteran's Greeting

Veterans Day Poppy Song

How to Draw Poppies

Friday Featured Freebies

 

1. Mummy Writing Template:  Such a fun way to write about a book!

You can find this fun FREE activity HERE over on Primary Theme Park. If you want to keep the theme of mummies going, below are some books that would be fun to read aloud or have available for your students to read.

Mummies in the Morning

Mummies

Where's My Mummy?

The Missing Mummy

2.  Using Mentor texts to teach concepts: 

As a principal I always loved when I popped into the classroom and rich literature was being used to teach concepts!  Head over to Collaboration Cuties to find out how to teach cause and effect, sequencing, alliteration, adjectives, and verbs using The Runaway Pumpkin. Grab this FREEBIE. 

Go to First Grade Fairy Tales to grab a freebie using Where's My Mummy to teach sentence types.  You can purchase Where's My Mummy HERE.

Head over to The Applicious Teacher to see how she uses The Legend of Spookley the Square Pumpkin to teach theme.  If you don't have a copy of the book, you can purchase it here.

The Primary Pack has a sequencing packet for Room on the Broom.  You can purchase the book here.

3. Some fun Halloween Story Starters:

Grab this FREEBIE.

4. Pumpkin Freebies:

First Grade Blue Skies has some fabulous ideas and freebies for a week full of pumpkin fun.  

My hope is that you can use these ideas in both traditional and virtual settings.  If you have a favorite Halloween freebie please share below in the comments!

 

 

A Halloween Creative Writing Project

I got a little carried away with this creative writing project, but I LOVE it!! Writing is an area that our school is really focusing on this year so my creativity seems to be going in that direction too. :0) Not only is this Halloween writing unit engaging but it will strengthen your students' writing skills. Here is a peek at the unit:

Whose Shoes?

2020 Update:  I have added a quick write activity to the unit and a list of some of my favorite Halloween books. 

If you want to purchase the books I have a post HERE with Amazon links to the books. Happy Halloween!

A Spooktacular List of Halloween Books

Halloween in the first grade classroom is magical!  Firsties love a good Halloween book and I'm right there with them.   Below is a list of some of our faves!  No particular order...they will all crack you up. Use these books to help spark some creative writing in your firsties or read for story time because it's FUN and our children need to know that they can read just to enjoy the story!!!

Even Monsters Need Haircuts

Just before midnight, on the night of a full moon, a young barber stays out past his bedtime to go to work. Although his customers are mostly regulars, they are anything but normal-after all, even monsters need haircuts. Business is steady all night, and this barber is prepared for anything with his scissors, rotting tonic, horn polish, and stink wax. It's a tough job, but someone's got to help these creatures maintain their ghoulish good looks.

Frankenstein

Frankenstein is the scariest of all the monsters in Miss Devel's castle. He can frighten anything―animals, parents, even rocks. Until one night, Miss Devel wakes up and runs downstairs to find that Frankenstein has lost his head.  Such a fun parody of Madeleine.

Bonaparte Falls Apart

Bonaparte is having a tough time. It’s hard for this young skeleton to just hang loose when he can’t keep hold of himself.
 
When he plays catch, his throwing arm literally takes a flyer. Eating lunch can be a real jaw-dropping occasion. How can he start school when he has so many screws loose?

Luckily, Bonaparte hit the bone-anza when it came to his friends. Franky Stein, Black Widow, and Mummicula all have some boneheaded ideas to help pull him together. But will it be enough to boost his confidence and get him ready for the first day of school?

The Halloweiner

Oscar is a little dog with a big problem -- he gets more tricks than treats because other dogs tease him all the time. But one brave act on Halloween makes Oscar a Grade-A hero, proving that a little wiener can be a real winner.  Great intro into discussing bullying and being kind to everyone.

Room on the Broom

The witch and her cat are happily flying through the sky on a broomstick when the wind picks up and blows away the witch's hat, then her bow, and then her wand!  Luckily, three helpful animals find the missing items, and all they want in return is a ride on the broom.  But is there room on the broom for so many friends?  And when disaster strikes, will they be able to save the witch from a hungry dragon?

Piggie Pie

Gritch the witch flies to Old MacDonald's farm for some pigs to make piggie pie.       

My Monster Mama Loves Me So

A sweet story of a monster and his mama.  

Brunhilda's Backwards Day

Brunhilda the witch loves making trouble. Each morning, she wakes up on the wrong side of the bed, puts on her ugliest dress, eats spider mush for breakfast, and brushes her teeth with candy. Then she looks in the mirror and happily observes, “You are utterly repulsive!” As soon as she leaves the house, she begins to spread her misery. No one is safe from her rainy-day spells or her wart-growing charms!

Dollar Deal of the Week - Silent E is a Ninja

 

Silent E is a Ninja is a fun and engaging unit for teaching silent E. You can grab the entire unit for $1 this week from 9/27 - 10/4 HERE.  I give my permission to send this unit to your students electronically if you have virtual/remote students.  The I Have Who Has card game would be so much fun for families to play with their firsties.  If you are in an area that families can't afford to print, maybe you could print the materials and schedule a time for families to drive by and pick up. 

I did notice the link to a fave video of my firsties that is included in the unit is no longer working.  Please go HERE to watch Silent E is a Ninja.  Sidenote:  Lin Manuel is one of the performers!!! He was an actor on Electric Company apparently before Hamilton...WHO KNEW???? This video was an absolute favorite of my firsties and I’m sure yours will love it too! They will ask to watch it over and over and you will be singing it in your sleep.