American Symbols

In this lesson, students will learn various American Symbolism: The White House, The Washington Monument, The National Flag, The Bald Eagle, and the Statue of Liberty and Mount Rushmore. I will be teaching through interactive PowerPoint slides. (3-4 minutes)

1.  In the beginning, the first monument students will go over is "The White House".The White House is the official home to the President. He lives and works here! It’s in a city called Washington DC. This is the capital of the USA. (3-4 minutes)

2. Did you know that DC actually stands for the District of Columbia? So next time you say Washing DC you can actually say “District of Columbia”. There was only one president that didn’t live in the White House and his name was George Washington. He was actually the first President of the USA. Do you know why? Because it wasn’t built yet. The first president to live in the White House was John Adams, he was the second president! The White House got its name from the people passing by who saw this for what it was: a white house. And that’s how it got its nickname! Funny, huh? And that’s how it got its name in 1901 from Theodore Roosevelt.  (4-5 minutes)

3. Next, we're going to be talking about the Washington Monument. This monument was made in 1885. It is actually one of the world’s tallest stone structures! It stands at 555 feet and 5 inches tall!! The reason why it is so important is that it helps us remember George Washington, who was the first President of the United States as well as Commander in Chief of the United States of America. (4-5 minutes)

4. Did you know that this monument was made in 1885? It is actually one of the world’s tallest stone structures! It stands at 555 feet and 5 inches tall!! The reason why it is so important is that it helps us remember George Washington, who was the first President of the United States as well as Commander in Chief of the United States of America. (4-5 minutes)

5. Our flag is called the “American Flag”. Raise your hand if you have ever heard of this? It has 13 stripes that represent the 13 colonies. The stripes are in the colors red and white. he blue area you see represents the union. The white stars represent the number of states we have in our country which is 50. (4-5 minutes)

6. Did you know that the  American flag has changed over the years! The flag actually didn’t have this uniform and organized pattern until the year 1960! The reason why they changed it in 1960 was that not all the states were declared as states on the flag! The flag serves as a symbol of honor, heritage, and national pride. This is why it’s displayed at all state buildings. (4-5 minutes)

7. The next monument we will talk about is the bald eagle. The American Bald Eagle was adopted as the national bird in 1782. 
We chose the American Bald Eagle for its majestic beauty, strength, love, life, and also because its native land was north America. (4-5 minutes)

8. Did you know that for 6 years, the members in congress argued about whether the bald eagle was the right national emblem for the United States? Also, the bald eagle used to be very popular in North America but its population started to decline due to farmers, fishers, and pesticide, and deforestation.  (4-5 minutes)

9. The next monument we are going to talk about is the statue of liberty. The statue of Liberty was actually a gift from France. 
This statue symbolizes freedom for people that come from different countries. It represents freedom, liberty, and democratic values of the United States. (4-5 minutes)

10. Did you know that The woman holding the torch is actually a Goddess named Libertas She holds the torch to symbolize universal enlightenment? The Statue of Liberty, from its base to the torch, is about 152 feet tall.  The Statue of Liberty is located in New York Harbor at the southern tip of Manhattan in New York City.  (4-5 minutes)

11. Have you ever been to any of these monuments or seen any of the symbols that we talked about today? (Students will share opinions at the time) (4-5 minutes)