Grade 2 | HISTORY AND SOCIAL STUDIES
WEEK 15 • STUDENT TEXTBOOK • DAYS 71–75
Read each lesson with a parent or teacher and study the worked example. Then answer the questions for that day in the Week 15 Practice Workbook.
Week 15 Student Textbook | Week 15 Practice Workbook | Week 15 Teacher Guide | Week 14 Student Textbook | Week 16 Student Textbook | Grade 2 index
Day 71: Why a Nation Remembers
A national holiday is a day set aside by law to remember an important person or event. Congress, the lawmaking part of our national government, decides which days are federal holidays. On those days, many government offices close.
To commemorate means to remember and honor. Learning when and why a holiday began tells us what the nation thought was worth remembering. This week you will study the history of five national holidays.
Worked example: Who decides which days are federal holidays?
- Federal holidays are set by law.
- Congress makes the nation’s laws.
Worked answer: Congress.
Day 72: Independence Day and Washington’s Birthday
On July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence. It said the colonies were free from Great Britain’s rule. In 1870, Congress made July 4 a holiday for federal workers in Washington, D.C.
George Washington was born on February 22, 1732. In 1879, Congress made his birthday a holiday for federal workers in Washington, D.C., and in 1885 for federal workers everywhere. Today it falls on the third Monday in February, and its official name is still Washington’s Birthday.
Worked example: On what day of the year is Independence Day?
- The Declaration of Independence was adopted on July 4, 1776.
- The holiday remembers that day.
Worked answer: July 4.
Day 73: Memorial Day and Veterans Day
Memorial Day remembers people who died while serving in the military. It began after the Civil War as Decoration Day, when people placed flowers on soldiers’ graves. On May 30, 1868, after General John Logan called for a day to decorate soldiers’ graves, a ceremony was held at Arlington National Cemetery. Today Memorial Day is the last Monday in May.
Veterans Day honors everyone who has served in the military. It began as Armistice Day, which remembered the end of the fighting in World War I on November 11, 1918. On November 11, 1947, Raymond Weeks, a veteran from Birmingham, Alabama, led a day in Birmingham to honor all veterans. In 1954, Congress changed the name of the holiday to Veterans Day.
Worked example: What was Veterans Day first called?
- The holiday began after World War I.
- It was named for the armistice that ended the fighting.
Worked answer: Armistice Day.
Day 74: Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Alabama
Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15, 1929. In 1954 he became the pastor of Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama. During the Montgomery bus boycott, he led the Montgomery Improvement Association. In 1963 he worked for equal rights in Birmingham and wrote his Letter from Birmingham Jail. In 1965 he helped lead the march from Selma to Montgomery for voting rights.
King worked for equal rights through peaceful protest, speeches and writing. In 1983, a law made his birthday a national holiday, and it was first observed on January 20, 1986. It falls on the third Monday in January.
Worked example: On which day of the week is Martin Luther King Jr. Day?
- The holiday falls on the third Monday in January.
- So it is always on a Monday.
Worked answer: Monday.
Day 75: Independent Check: National Holidays
Today you will answer on your own.
Use what you learned this week: why a nation remembers, and when and why five national holidays began.
Worked example: Which holiday falls on July 4?
- July 4, 1776 is when the Declaration was adopted.
- The holiday on that day remembers it.
Worked answer: Independence Day.
Week 15 Student Textbook | Week 15 Practice Workbook | Week 15 Teacher Guide | Week 14 Student Textbook | Week 16 Student Textbook | Grade 2 index