For many of us Labor Day is a day off! For others, it’s time to put away all of our white colored clothing and dust off our sweaters, it’s the “unofficial” end of summer. Just how many of us know the roots of Labor Day? As homeschoolers, it’s a great opportunity to study a piece of American History.
A man named Peter McQuire was only 11 years old when he first set foot in a factory. His father was off fighting in the Civil War and the family needed money, so Peter went to work. Peter saw first hand the conditions that workers were subjected to during his time working in the factories. As an adult, Peter became a union leader to improve conditions for workers. He and other workers called for a celebration that honored the working man. In1882, the Knights of Labor organized the first Labor Day parade. More than 10,000 workers took the day off and marched in New York City. They wanted a standard 8 hour work day.
Over the years the unions began to grow and eventually asked that Labor Day become a national holiday. In 1894, Congress and President Grover Cleveland signed the law that gave American workers their own day, Labor Day. We celebrate it on the first Monday of September.
There are some excellent resources online to encourage Labor Day learning! For younger children, there are some great craft ideas, book suggestions and community helper studies. Older kids can spend some time learning about labor unions in the United States and it’s a great time to generate discussions on work and the rights of workers.
A Few Great Sites!
USA for Kids has a great Labor Day site with links to the U.S. Labor Department and the U.S. Census Bureau. They also have a great printable of U.S. holidays that describe the origins of all of our American holidays. It would make a great addition to a holiday unit study!
Another site that is The Holiday Zone. The Labor Day section of the site includes everything you need to put together an age appropriate lesson on Labor Day. Topics include; Arts and Crafts, Discussion Topics for Labor Day,Printables for Labor Day(including stories, crossword puzzles, mazes and talk and color sheets). The site even includes a Labor Day vocabulary section!
(as with any site, please evaluate it for your own personal needs)
Labor Day is also an excellent time to discuss what the Bible says about work. One idea is to have the children illustrate what the verse means to them, or print out a verse and use it as a memory verse for week or month. It’s also a neat idea to focus family prayers this month on those who work. Spend time each week of September praying for a different group as a family.
WEEK 1: Pray for community workers (firemen and women, police, ambulance drivers, doctors, nurses)
WEEK 2: Pray for those who work in unsafe conditions in other countries.
WEEK 3: Pray for those who make the laws of our country, focusing prayer on our government and the men and women who work in our government.
WEEK 4: Pray for all those who work in the Armed Services protecting our freedom.
This year, while you put away your “white wear,” why not make a mini~unit study out of Labor Day!
Happy Labor Day!!
