I love America, I Want our Kids to as well

Now is a great time to explain to your children what makes our country so special.  Here are ten things that you can review with children and grandchildren. Pass it on!

1. Our Flag: it is full of symbolism and history.  It will warm your heart just to review what was once taken seriously. 

2.   Our Pledge:  if you don’t know how to explain the pledge, click here to hear Red Skelton explain the pledge of allegiance. It will send chills up your spine.

3. Our National Anthem:  A young poet and lawyer named Francis Scott Key wrote the words during the War of 1812. After British ships bombarded a fort in Baltimore during a fierce battle, Key saw our flag still flying, proudly waving. It meant that we still had our freedoms and that we had defended our young country.

4. Our Patriotic Holiday’s:  They are about honoring thepeople and the history that has made us who and what we are.  Honor should be given to whom honor is due (sounds Biblical doesn’t it?).

5. Our Communities:  Sometimes called ‘the grass roots’ meaning where the real nation exists.  Where our values are lived out on a daily basis and where people work together for the good of all and respect for one another is a banner we all proudly live under.

6. Our Protectors:  Our system is set up to protect us and make us truly safe.  From the military to the crossing guard, from the president to the custodian, we care, we rule and we protect everyone.

7. Our Presidents:  They are not kings or dictators, but they work for ‘we the people.’  One of our presidents was the least likely to ever achieve this position.  He was a rugged, poverty stricken pioneer growing up.  But he worked hard and as president Abraham Lincoln fought to end slavery and to keep our country together.  His story teaches us that anyone can become president of the United States of America.

8. Our Rights:  Unlike any other country, this country allows you the freedom to pursue your happiness.  We never use this freedom to harm or take away another person’s rights.

9. Our Responsibilities:  Everyone needs to ‘pitch in’ this is called citizenship.  Everyone should vote their conscience, obey the law and pay their taxes.

10. Our People:  People came here long ago seeking freedom, not to force their culture or ethnicity upon the land.  This is a profound notion that is found anywhere else in this world.  Not only should we be proud of this but to make sure it is preserved for all in the future.