4th of July Unit Study Ideas and Activities for Your Homeschool
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4th of July Unit Study Ideas and Activities for Your Homeschool
It’s important for our children to understand our nation’s history. Many families enjoy celebrating Independence Day (often referred to as the 4th of July) with fireworks, homemade ice cream, and family cookouts.
But do we really understand why we celebrate? These 4th of July Unit Study Ideas and Activities for Your Homeschool will help your children learn more about this important holiday in a way that’s fun and hands-on!
A Brief History of the 4th of July
Kick off a 4th of July unit study with history. If you and your children or teens enjoy doing research, there are many online resources you can use to learn all about the history of our nation and why we celebrate on the 4th of July. If you’re looking for something super short that covers just the basics, though, take a look at “The Story of the Fourth of July” on Constitution Facts. In the margin of that short article, you’ll find links to quite a few more articles with details about other related events, dates, papers, etc.
4th of July Activity Pack from Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers
We created a July 4th Activity Pack with information and activities that can be used with both children and teens as part of your 4th of July unit study. (Children may need a little more help, but most teens can do the work independently.) In this activity pack, you’ll find:
- basic map work
- math questions designed to give students an idea of how long it took to travel from one location to another during colonial times
- some questions to research to give students a greater understanding of Independence Day/4th of July
- a quiz to find out how much your students remember (or what they already know)
- a couple of songs/videos with questions to help your students think more deeply about the topics included
- some questions for short writing assignments
- a couple of coloring pages (because even teens and adults enjoy coloring)!
- answers to the quiz questions
To get your 4th of July Activity Pack from Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers, click here!
“Free Falling Freedom Towers” 4th of July Game
Freedom is precious. It’s important. And it’s something we often take for granted. This simple game (It only requires plastic cups and index cards!) is a great way to illustrate that our freedom must be guarded and cared for if we’re going to keep it.
You’ll find the instructions for setting up and playing the game as well as information and discussion points in the Free Falling Freedom Towers Game article on the Hip Homeschool Moms site.
4th of July Unit Study Ideas – Arts and Crafts
If you want to incorporate a few arts and crafts ideas into your study for the 4th of July, we have some great ones to share with you!
Older children and teens will enjoy this 4th of July 3D Art Project Tutorial that includes a template and instructions for making a pretty papercraft showing a sky full of fireworks over a city vista. You can make it in whatever colors you like, and you can display it or give it to someone you love.
Younger children (well, honestly, even teens and adults) may enjoy doing a 4th of July Color by Number. For very young children, it can double as a lesson in identifying numbers and following instructions, too! All you have to do is print it, and it’s ready to use.
Or how about some patriotic slime?! Yes, you read correctly. 🙂 This Patriotic Slime Recipe is great for a 4th of July unit study. Or you can change the colors and use it for other holidays or birthday celebrations or just for fun! It’s easy and inexpensive to make, too.
Kids in the Kitchen Recipes for Your Fourth of July Unit Study
We really enjoy a cooking element in our studies. Food is a way to understand a culture, learn math skills, enjoy some chemistry lessons, and just have fun with your children. We have a few traditional recipes below to add to a 4th of July unit study.
Appetizers or Side Dishes
If you’re having a family cookout (even if yours will be the only family in attendance!), you’ll want to try some of these yummy recipes!
For one of your side dishes, try Copycat Cracker Barrel Cole Slaw. If you like it less tangy, just add less vinegar. My daughter and I love it super tangy, but my husband doesn’t, so we simply take some out for him before adding the vinegar.
I don’t know about the rest of the country, but down here in the South, we love some pulled pork or pulled beef with our coleslaw. (Put the pulled pork on a bun along with some coleslaw, or eat them side-by-side. Either way, they are delicious together!) Be sure to look at the brisket recipe or the slow cooker beef roast recipe below since either of them can easily be turned into pulled beef–or pork if you use pork roast instead of beef.
To turn this Rainbow Fruit Salad into a 4th of July side dish, just use the red, white, and blue fruits and leave out the others. Or use them all and don’t worry about it!
And if you need a little something to snack on between meals or as an appetizer, these Chicken Salad Bites are great for holidays or any other time.
Main Dishes
Many families enjoy grilling the main dish on this holiday. If your family has a cookout, try making these delicious Honey BBQ Chicken Skewers with Grilled Corn. We think you’ll love them! And most kids will eat pretty much anything served on a stick, so that’s a bonus. 🙂
If you’d rather use your oven, this Easy Dry Rub Brisket cooks for about 4 hours (leaving you time to take care of other things while it cooks) and is super tender and yummy!
The next main dish I’ll share with you today can be either baked in the oven or cooked over the grill! You choose! And, as a bonus, it’s low carb. So if you want a recipe that’s fun, low carb, and delicious, this is the one for you! What is it? It’s my Low Carb Chicken Bacon Ranch Foil Packet Meal, and you’re going to love it!
If you want to make pulled pork or beef (to go with that cole slaw I mentioned above), just use this recipe for Easy Quick Prep Slow Cooker Beef Roast with Potatoes and Carrots. Leave out the potatoes and carrots, and pour a bottle of barbecue sauce over the beef when it’s fully cooked. Shred it with a fork, and it’s ready to go! (You may need to reheat the meat after you add the barbecue sauce. Or you can heat the sauce before you add it to the meat.)
Desserts
And of course, you’ll need some desserts to finish off your meal! These Easy Decorated Sugar Cookies are beautiful for spring, but you can easily adapt them for the 4th of July or any other holiday. Just use different cookie cutters and red, white, and blue icing.
If you’re on a low-carb diet but don’t want to have to pass on dessert, try our Keto Chocolate Covered Strawberry Fat Bombs. our Low Carb, No-Bake Blueberry Cheesecake , or these Delicious Keto Strawberry Macadamia Nut Cookies.
Or, if you live where it gets hot (It gets super hot down here in the South where I live!), you might enjoy these Creamy Refreshing Blueberry Cheesecake Popsicles or this Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream (Only 5 Ingredients).
Did You Enjoy This 4th of July Unit Study, Then Celebrate Even More July “Holidays”!
Yes, it’s important to teach our children about important days and holidays in our nation’s history. And it’s important to have serious discussions with them about serious topics. But it’s also necessary to build strong relationships with our children and to have fun with them! For that reason, I love taking some time to celebrate fun “holidays” with my family. (Anybody want to celebrate Chocolate Day or National Ice Cream Day? Now those are holidays I don’t mind observing!)
To find out about all kinds of fun and wacky holidays check out Celebrating Summer: Enjoying the Everyday This July. Or how about Embrace Your Geekness Day or Hammock Day? Those are a couple more July holidays I wouldn’t mind celebrating. 🙂 You can find those holidays and more at Celebrate Every Day of July.
If You Enjoyed my 4th of July Unit Study, You May Also Like
If you’d like to add some summer reading or other summer fun to your homeschool (or even if you’re taking the summer off from school and just want to do something fun with your kiddos), try some of the ideas below.
A Huge Collection of Summer Reading Ideas (Updated Yearly)
Wendy is one of the owners of Hip Homeschool Moms, Only Passionate Curiosity, Homeschool Road Trips, Love These Recipes, and Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers. She married her high school sweetheart, Scott, 31 years ago, and they live in the South. They have three adult children. Hannah, age 27, has autism and was the first homeschool graduate in the family. Noah, age 25, was the second homeschool graduate and the first to leave the nest. Mary Grace, age 19, was the last homeschool graduate. Wendy loves working out and teaching Training for Warriors classes at her local gym. She also enjoys learning along with her family, educational travel, reading, and writing, and she attempts to grow a garden every summer with limited success. (But she's learning!)
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I’m so glad you found us and that our information has been helpful to you!! That is a huge encouragement to all of us at Hip Homeschool Moms! Thank you for your sweet comment, and happy homeschooling to you. 🙂