Memorial Day, Flag Day, and Independence Day -- this is a season of patriotic holidays and celebrations. It's a good time to sit down and design meaningful experiences.
Celebrating patriotic holidays over the years can be a powerful tradition that helps our families develop a love and appreciation of America and our great heritage.
And creating family patriotic celebrations can be fun and easy.
Start with the question, "What do I want to have happen?"
* Think about the event, why it's important and what you want to teach.
* Think about your family, what they would benefit from and enjoy doing.
* Select a few meaningful activities that accomplish your purposes.
Set aside time to celebrate. If you can't celebrate on the actual holiday, you can create your own special day (or week) to celebrate when it's more convenient for you. You can even create your own "family holidays" that reflect the things your family cares about most.
Make the experience positive. If kids are unhappy, it's probably better to keep the learning time short. Your attitude is the key. Kids might not remember everything you say, but they will remember how you make them feel. I'm surprised how often reluctant teens later come to appreciate and even treasure family traditions they once complained about.
Our family celebrations are usually more festive when we include good friends and yummy food. We also enjoy fun activities, movies, and music. But we try to include learning experiences. And some of our favorite memories are centered around times when we're trying to help others.
Family celebrations can benefit from an informal written evaluation afterward. What went well? What would we do differently next time? Even some of the specifics about resources used, budget, etc. can be helpful if they are recorded. These evaluations can be kept in a notebook or file folder to help when you are planning future celebrations.
Probably the most important thing is to create happy memories together that everyone will want to remember. Be sure to record special experiences in a family journal. Include pictures when you can. Videos are great too. They will become a treasured reminder of happy family celebrations.