This post is a little late, but well worth posting despite the delay. Yesterday was Armed Forces Day. A day that we honor all of the brave men and women who serve in the military. Thank you for your service.

In the beginning of the year, I was teaching my first grader about citizenship, the United States, our government and our military. One of the things we did was take some time to sit down together to learn about the many branches of our military and what the role and history was for each unit. We talked about the Army, the Navy, the Marines, the Air Force, the National Guard, and the Coast Guard. Then we talked about people we knew that served in the military. My grandfather earned a purple heart in the Marines, and my uncle served in the marines as well. My father was an electrician in the Army. Many of our friends, past and present, have a parent serving in the military. We are thankful for their service.

Many families relocate all over the country and the world every few years as military assignments change. And for many families one parent is gone for months at a time. It’s not an easy job on either end for these families. They all make sacrifices.

I found this website for kids with military parents to connect with others, learn about deployment and other military-related topics, play games, and more. Check it out here: http://militarykidsconnect.dcoe.mil/

Here is the same site with the link to the educators page where you can get lesson plans and resources about the military: http://militarykidsconnect.dcoe.mil/educators

You can find out more about the military at the Department of Defense website here: http://www.defense.gov/afd/

Questions for Conversation:

Do you know anyone in the military?

Do you have friends with a parent in the military? If so, what do you think their life is like?

What are the different branches of the military?

What are the roles of each branch of the military?