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| Image Credit: Free-Photos - CCO Public Domain Image - via Pixabay |
Why Celebrate Labor Day?
In 1894, Labor Day became an official national holiday in the United States. Labor Day is a special day set aside to honor American workers for
all the hard work they do each day. In the world of education, teachers
use Labor Day as an opportunity to teach their students about various
careers. Teachers usually accomplish that task in the form of thematic
units such as “Community Helpers.”
Families might celebrate Labor Day by going camping or organizing a picnic. There are many ways to celebrate Labor Day and teach children about the holiday. However one chooses to enjoy Labor Day, many American citizens are able to enjoy the day by doing no labor at all. Instead, they choose to relax with family and friends.
Parents and teachers can take time on Labor Day to teach children about many of the careers that make up the workforce in the United States. It is impossible to cover all areas of the American workforce but the following ideas will help children learn about a few while parents and teachers can teach them to appreciate all American workers.
Ask the children to identify the images on several postage stamps and discuss the reason that particular person is famous. What job did that person do? Do this with several postage stamps so that various historical figures and their professions are identified by the children. Then ask the children to think of someone they know who works hard every day doing a particular job that was not discussed during the postage stamp discussion. Instruct the children to create a postage stamp honoring the person they chose and the job that person does. Display the stamps in the school hallway or classroom to honor those professions on Labor Day.
Whether at home or at school, children can express their appreciation for the adult workers around them. Talk to the children about people who impact their lives and the jobs they do. Some children will tell you about a firefighter or a policeman they know. Other children might name a doctor or a nurse. Some might discuss a favorite professional athlete or the mechanic who works on the family vehicle. Still other children might name their teacher or the mom who works hard all day at home to take care of her family. So many working adults, inside and outside the home, affect the lives of children every day.
After leading a discussion about those people, ask the children to create a special card for the person they chose to discuss. Give them ideas about how to express their gratitude, but allow them to use their own words and decorate the cards themselves. If possible, obtain addresses and teach the children how to address envelopes. Take the children to the post office to mail the cards or ask a mail carrier to visit the classroom and discuss his job with the class and then collect the cards to mail for them.
Organize a “Career Dress Up Day.” Ask each child to think of the job they might like to do when they grow up. Tell them to come to school on a pre-determined day dressed for that career. If the children are older, perhaps third, fourth, or fifth grade, allow the children to develop and present a presentation to the class explaining the details of the career he or she chose to represent. In the meantime, have various speakers visit the school to discuss their careers with the class. Be sure to include a diverse variety of jobs. Include professionals such as doctors and attorneys and businessmen, but also include mechanics, bus and truck drivers, clerical workers, retailers, etc. Remember to discuss with the children the importance of all sorts of jobs and job types. Remind them that it takes all types of jobs and all types of people to do those jobs in order to keep America and the communities around them functioning every day. Don’t forget to stress the importance and value of every citizen, including the importance and value of every child.
Are you planning to teach your children or students about community helpers or other careers? Usborne Books can help.
Families might celebrate Labor Day by going camping or organizing a picnic. There are many ways to celebrate Labor Day and teach children about the holiday. However one chooses to enjoy Labor Day, many American citizens are able to enjoy the day by doing no labor at all. Instead, they choose to relax with family and friends.
Parents and teachers can take time on Labor Day to teach children about many of the careers that make up the workforce in the United States. It is impossible to cover all areas of the American workforce but the following ideas will help children learn about a few while parents and teachers can teach them to appreciate all American workers.
Postage Stamp Heroes
Ask the children to identify the images on several postage stamps and discuss the reason that particular person is famous. What job did that person do? Do this with several postage stamps so that various historical figures and their professions are identified by the children. Then ask the children to think of someone they know who works hard every day doing a particular job that was not discussed during the postage stamp discussion. Instruct the children to create a postage stamp honoring the person they chose and the job that person does. Display the stamps in the school hallway or classroom to honor those professions on Labor Day.
Appreciation Cards
Whether at home or at school, children can express their appreciation for the adult workers around them. Talk to the children about people who impact their lives and the jobs they do. Some children will tell you about a firefighter or a policeman they know. Other children might name a doctor or a nurse. Some might discuss a favorite professional athlete or the mechanic who works on the family vehicle. Still other children might name their teacher or the mom who works hard all day at home to take care of her family. So many working adults, inside and outside the home, affect the lives of children every day.
After leading a discussion about those people, ask the children to create a special card for the person they chose to discuss. Give them ideas about how to express their gratitude, but allow them to use their own words and decorate the cards themselves. If possible, obtain addresses and teach the children how to address envelopes. Take the children to the post office to mail the cards or ask a mail carrier to visit the classroom and discuss his job with the class and then collect the cards to mail for them.
Career Dress Up Day
Organize a “Career Dress Up Day.” Ask each child to think of the job they might like to do when they grow up. Tell them to come to school on a pre-determined day dressed for that career. If the children are older, perhaps third, fourth, or fifth grade, allow the children to develop and present a presentation to the class explaining the details of the career he or she chose to represent. In the meantime, have various speakers visit the school to discuss their careers with the class. Be sure to include a diverse variety of jobs. Include professionals such as doctors and attorneys and businessmen, but also include mechanics, bus and truck drivers, clerical workers, retailers, etc. Remember to discuss with the children the importance of all sorts of jobs and job types. Remind them that it takes all types of jobs and all types of people to do those jobs in order to keep America and the communities around them functioning every day. Don’t forget to stress the importance and value of every citizen, including the importance and value of every child.
Are you planning to teach your children or students about community helpers or other careers? Usborne Books can help.
Learn About Firefighters
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| Firefighters |
Fires, accidents, earthquakes and floods -- firefighters are never far
from danger. Discover in this thrilling book where they work, how they
fight fires and how they rescue people.
"Firefighters" is part of
an exciting series of books for children who are beginning to read on
their own. The easy-to-read text has been specially written with the
help of a reading expert. Check it out here.
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| At the Garage |
Spend a day at the garage where busy mechanics repair and restore all
kinds of vehicles, including motorcycles, police cruisers, trucks, and
cars. Hold the special pages to the light to see inside all the inner
workings of the garage! Check it out here.
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| On the Construction Site |
Young builders will delight in exploring all the hidden secrets of a
construction site. They simply hold the book’s pages to the light to
“see-through” everything that’s being built – inside and out. Check it out here.
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| On the Plane |
What can you spot at the airport today? Shine a light behind
the page and see … From the airport staff who X-ray the baggage and check
passports, to the pilots who fly the planes, each page-turn takes you behind
the scenes of an exciting plane trip. Check it out here.
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| Vet Academy |
Packed full of fun, educational activities, Vet Academy
lets children explore life as a veterinarian, from the rigorous
training involved in learning about different kinds of animals to the
importance of food, exercise and conservation.
The book is
broken up into sections -- Pet Vet, Zoo Vet, and Farm Vet -- and each
section includes arts and crafts, puzzles and quizzes, plus tasks and
missions. Everything from learning about dog body language to a day in
the life of a zoo elephant (and her vet), to farm vet hygiene – it’s all
in here. Plus, there’s also a pull-out poster, game, cards and sticker
sheets to add to the interactive fun. Check it out here.
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| Scientist Academy |
Discover the essential skills required on the way to becoming a scientist in this innovative activity book
Packed full of great illustrations, fun facts, and absorbing activities, Scientist Academy introduces
and then guides young readers through five different types of
scientists—laboratory scientist, investigative scientist, space
scientist, earth scientist, and life scientist. Practical projects, each
carefully designed to introduce the types of skills required by the
different real-life scientists, help kids pick up the basics in a fun,
hands-on way. Create a pendulum, investigate a crime scene, uncover some
fossils, and study the solar system—the sky’s the limit!
The
“Science File” section contains all sorts of goodies, such as Science
Pairs game cards, a periodic table poster, and zoology stickers. Check it out here.
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| Astronaut Academy |
An activity book like no other! Through a series of fun and challenging
tasks, kids will begin to understand the skills and training required to
become an astronaut on a mission to Mars.
There are “classes” for kids to attend as part of their training. These
include Space Pilot, Space Living, Space Engineer, Space Scientist, and
Space Gym. Each topic is explored in detail and accompanied by astronaut
missions, including physical and mental challenges, as well as drawing
and craft activities designed to mimic the skills involved in real-life
training. Kids will tackle hand-eye coordination exercises and obstacle
courses and learn how to build a balloon rocket, as well as first aid
skills.
There are also stickers, a poster, and a model space shuttle. Check it out here.
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| Engineering Academy |
Packed full of great illustrations, fun facts, and
absorbing activities, it guides readers through each strand of
engineering science – Mechanics, Aerospace, Robotics, Energy, and
Materials. Practical projects, each carefully designed to introduce the
kinds of skills required by real-life engineers, help kids pick up the
basics in a fun, hands-on way.
Design a robot, learn how to
construct a simple car, create levers and pulleys, build paper planes,
plus many other educational and inspirational activities – the sky’s the
limit! Check it out here.
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| Coding for Beginners Using Python |
An introduction to coding for complete beginners, this friendly and
accessible book will teach children the basics of Python (a widely used
programming language), allowing them to get inside the code of their
computer and create simple games and animations on screen. Check it out here.
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| Doctor Academy |
Learn all about the skills you need to be a primary care doctor or
surgeon, including how to work out what’s wrong with your patient, what
different organs and bones do, how to take a pulse, and how an X-ray
machine works. So grab your stethoscope and start your training! Check it out here.
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