To Honor Veterans

It has been a long and busy week in my classroom.  Between the election and finishing our argument essays we have barely a minute to spare, except where Veterans are concerned.

Last year I saw many people blogging about this book:

After reading the summary, I knew I had to read it this year.

As we read we set the Rememberance Table.

After I read the story I shared with them my connection with the story.

This is my friend Scott.
He felt drawn to serve America after 9/11.
He served two tours, one in Afghanistan and one in Iraq.
He has recently left the military to pursue a career in education.
Last year, he got married on Veterans Day.  At his wedding reception, they had a Rememberance table.
So touching!

After the students heard my connection to the story, they wrote about someone they thought was a hero.

Many wrote about grandpas, or family members that served in the military.  One of my students has a mom who teaches special needs students and she has a service dog to help with her work, so he wrote about his dog.  Others wrote about school staff like our nurse or custodian.

It was one of those melt your heart moments.

How do you honor Veterans in your classroom?

EmilyK