Holidays in the USA Maeve Dillon

1. Holidays in the USA Maeve Dillon http://www.usa.gov/citizens/holidays.shtml http://www.history.com/topics/new-years http://www.history.com/topics/martin-luther-king-jr http://www.history.com/topics/history-of-easter http://www.history.com/topics/memorial-day-history http://www.history.com/topics/july-4th http://www.history.com/topics/earth-day http://www.history.com/topics/labor-day

2. Holidays in the USA • Third grade • Content area: • History • Culture in the USA • Students will answers questions about the holidays and they will ask questions about the power point

4. New Year’s • Celebrated January 1st (usually celebrated the night before at midnight • Americans make resolutions about what they plan to do different this coming year • This is celebrated around the world • Julius Ceasar said that January 1St was the beginning of the year to honor the Roman god Janus, who was the god of beginnings

5. Birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. • Martin Luther King Jr. played a very big role in the civil rights movement • He was murdered on April 4th, 1968 in Memphis Tennessee • President Reagan, in 1983 signed a bill to honor Martin Luther King Jr. on the third Monday of January

6. Easter • Is called “A moveable feast” because it doesn’t fall on the same day every year • Can be anywhere from March 22- April 25 • Is a very important holiday in the Christian church because it’s the day that Jesus rose from the dead • Has been celebrated for centuries all over the world

7. Earth Day • Was founded in 1970 to educate people about the environment • Is celebrated April 22 • Is globally celebrated and some countries think it’s even important enough to make it a week long • Wisconsin’s senator Gaylord Neson came up with the idea of Earth Day as a movement to save the environement

8. Memorial Day • Is celebrated the last Monday of May to honor the men and women who died while serving in the US military • Was originally called Decoration Day • This holiday was started the years following the Civil War • Was declared a federal holiday in 1971

9. Independence Day • Is celebrated on July 4th • In July 1776, the 13 colonies were freed from Great Britain’s power • On July 2nd the Contential Congress decided on independence • This is also the birthday of the King, American’s decided to celebrate this day to mock the king and celebrate their independence

10. Labor Day • Is celebrated the first Monday of September • Became a federal holiday in 1894 • Is usually celebrated with parties to symbolize the end of summer • Is a holiday to celebrate all workers for their hard work • Before this holiday was official, workers used to have parades and would give up some of their wages to participate

11. Columbus Day • Is celebrated on the second Sunday in October • Celebrates the day the Columbus landed in America on October 2, 1492 • It was celebrated as early as the 18th century • This holiday is also a day the Italians celebrate their heritage • This became an official federal holiday in 1937, by President Franklin D. Roosevelt

12. Veteran’s Day

13. Valentine’s Day

14. Patriot’s Day

15. Groundhogs Day

16. Halloween

17. Thanksgiving Day

18. Pearl Harbor Day

19. Christmas Day