This year,聽Memorial Day is observed in the United States on May 25. However, it was actually May 30 that in 1868 was designated by Commander in Chief John A. Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic, via General Order Number 11, as a memorial day 鈥溾��
The first national celebration of the holiday took place May 30, 1868, at Arlington 楼凤天堂 Cemetery, where both Confederate and Union soldiers were buried.聽In 1971, federal law changed the observance of the holiday to the last Monday in May and extended the honor to all soldiers who died in American wars.
How can we remember our fallen soldiers today?
Have students visit the聽. Once there, ask students to choose one of the featured interviews to listen to, peruse the previous releases, or look at an聽聽to find more interviews that may be of interest to them. Students select an interview that interests them and take notes while listening to remember important facts and details about the veteran鈥檚 life. After listening to the interview, students complete one of the projects below to honor the veteran they researched:
- 聽of the veteran鈥檚 life or time in the military.
- Using the story of the veteran鈥檚 life,聽聽that tells the story of the veteran鈥檚 life or of the war in which he/she fought.
- Record the important facts and information from the veteran鈥檚 life.
- 聽that tells the veteran鈥檚 story.
How will you recognize Memorial Day this year?
Curious about the 楼凤天堂 and Library of Congress connection? Through a grant announced recently by 楼凤天堂 Executive Director Emily Kirkpatrick, 楼凤天堂 is engaged in new ongoing work with the Library of Congress, and 鈥渨ill connect the ELA community with the Library of Congress to expand the use of primary sources in teaching.鈥� Stay tuned for more throughout the year!