LABOR DAY
Labor Day is a day set aside to honor people who work,
by giving them the day off.

LABOR DAY ART

THANK YOU CARDS

  • Set out some blank index cards and a rubber stamp that says “Thank You” on it, plus a stamp pad.
  • Show your children how to stamp the words “Thank You” on a card.
  • Then have the children decorate the cards with marking pens.
  • Encourage the children to give the cards to people who work at helping them, such as; school helpers; street crossing guards; bus drivers; librarians; grocery clerks, etc.
     

COMMUNITY HELPER MURAL

  • Ask your children to bring in magazine pictures of people working at various jobs.
  • Discuss the pictures as they come in each day.
  • When you have at least ten, let your children glue them onto a large piece of paper to make a class mural of “Community Helpers”.
 
WORKER COLLAGE
Collect a number of pictures of people doing different kinds of work.
Ask parents to send in occupation pictures taken from old magazines.
Set out a large piece of paper, the occupation pictures and some glue.
Have your children work together to make a large collage of workers.
Hang the college up in your room.
 
CLASSROOM WORKER BADGES
Discuss classroom jobs.
Make job badges for your children.
Give a badge to each child and let them decorate the badge with stickers.

Hang the badges up in your room and use them each day to assign jobs to each child.

Have a treat at the end of each week to celebrate your classroom workers.
LABOR DAY GAMES
HATS OFF TO WORKERS
Ask your children to bring in hats worn by a variety of workers.

Hold up the hats one by one, and have the children tell you who wears each hat.

Then let your children sort the hats by color, material, or kind of job.
 
TOOL MATCH UP
Set out some different tools that workers use in their jobs.
Such as; a hammer, a rolling pin, a fishing pole, a shovel, a needle and thread.
Sit with your children and hold up an item.
Have your children tell you what kind of a job would use this tool.

 
SHAPE MATCH UP
Collect a number of tools that workers use, such as; a hammer, a rolling pin, a stapler, a comb, a paint brush.

Lay the tools on a sheet of paper and trace around each tool.

Remove the tools and set them to the side of the paper.
Let your children take turns placing the correct tool on top of the shape outlines.
 
DRAMATIC PLAY
Make up some worker prop boxes, and let your children us them for dramatic play. Here are a few suggestions:
Baker: Play dough, cookie cutters, plastic knifes, baking sheet, muffin tin, oven mitt, birthday candles.
House Cleaner: Sponge, bucket, spray bottle, dust cloth, feather duster, small broom, dustpan.
Gardener: Gloves, trowel, small rake and shovel, watering can, kneepads, seed packets.
 
MOVEMENT FUN
Stand in a circle with your children.
Have your children each pretend to be a worker.
When you say “work”, have them begin working.
When you say “rest”, have them stop working and rest.
 
GUESS THE WORKER
Stand in a circle with your children.
Choose one child to go into the middle of the circle.
Have the child in the middle pretend to do a job.
Have the rest of the children try to guess what occupation the child in the middle is trying to represent.
 
LABOR DAY LANGUAGE
ALPHABET JOBS
Check out the list of alphabet occupations at the Alphabet Station.
Use the list to help you make an occupations Alphabet Book.
Have your children help you find pictures of each letters occupations.
Set the completed book out for your class to enjoy.
 
THANK YOU NOTES
Fold a piece of paper in-half and have your child draw a picture of a worker they would like to thank, such as; a postman, a garbage man, a policeman, parent.
On the inside of the card, write: “Thank you for all your hard work”.
Have your child sign his name.
 
Occupation Books
What Will I Be by Wendy Lewison
Jobs People Do by DK Publishing
LABOR DAY SOCIAL STUDIES

COMMUNITY FIELD TRIPS

  • Plan some short field trips with your children to such places as;  a florist shop; a bakery; a fire station, a Post Office, etc.
  • Discuss with your children the different jobs that people at these places do.

Variation:  If you are unable to do field trips with your group, try asking parents to volunteer to each take a couple of children to one of these places, then have each group come back to your classroom and report about what they observed.
 
WORKER VISITS

Invite workers to visit your classroom to share their jobs with your children.

Before each visit, help your children think of questions to ask.

If you wish, make a list of their questions.

During each visit, take a variety of photographs.

Once the photos are developed, let your children dictate stories about the visits.
Put the photos and stories into a class book.
 
ABOUT THE HOLIDAY
Explain to your children that Labor Day is a holiday that honors workers everywhere, giving them a day off to have fun.
It is also the last big holiday of the summer.
Ask your children to recall some of the jobs they did over the summer.
Can they think of something new that they learned how to do?
LABOR DAY SNACKS
WORKERS LUNCHES
Explain how most workers bring their lunches with them to work.
If you wish, show your children a variety of lunch boxes.

Then let the children pack their own “working lunches”.

Set out a variety of snack items.

Give each of your children a brown paper bag with his or her name written on it.

Have the children choose two or three items to put into their bags.

Let the children take their lunch bags to the “lunch room” and eat their snack.
 

SNACKTIME HELPER
Let your children take turns helping you in preparing a snack.
Show them how to slice bananas, pour small cups of juice, count out crackers, etc.
Also, let your children help you set the table and help you clean up.
Explain, that when everyone helps, the work is easier.
 
LAROR DAY SONGS AND RHYMES

OCCUPATION RAP

I met a teacher and the teacher said, “Why aren’t you home in bed?”
I met a baker and the baker said, “Why aren’t you home in bed?”
I met a carpenter and the carpenter said, “Why aren’t you home in bed?”
I met a soldier and the soldier said, “Why aren’t you home in bed?
Continue with other occupations – then end with:
I met a doctor and the doctor said, “Go right home and go to bed”.
I went right home and jumped in bed.
My body was covered with spots all red!
                                                            Jean Warren

 
OH, THE WORKERS GO TO WORK
Tune:  “The Wheels On The Bus”

Oh, the workers go to work and work all day,
Work all day, work all day.
Oh, the workers go to work and work all day,
All through the town.

Oh, the bakers go to work and bake all day,
Bake all day, bake all day,
Oh, the bakers to work and bake all day,
All through the town.

Continue with other workers.
                                    Jean Warren
 

WHEN I’M GROWN UP
Tune:  “Frere Jacques”

When I’m grown up, when I’m grown up,
Big and tall, big and tall.
I will be a teacher,
I will be a teacher,
When I’m big, when I’m tall.
                        Elizabeth Scofield
Invite your children to substitute the kind of worker he wants to be for “teacher”.

 
WORKERS ON PARADE
Tune:  “When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again”

The workers are marching into town, hooray, hooray!
The workers are taking a rest from work, today, today.
Here come chefs, in clean white coats.
Here come doctors with stethoscopes.
Oh, we’re oh so glad that, they could come today.

The workers are marching into town, hooray, hooray!
They smile at everyone along the way.
Here come postmen with letters in hand.
Here come musicians from a band.
Oh, we’re oh so glad that, they could come today.
                                                Jean Warren

Plan a workers parade with your children.  Have them each pretend to be a specific type of worker by carrying some object that that type of worker would use.  Sing the song above as they march.  Adapt the song to fit  the occupations your children have chosen.
Or have your children pretend to be the workers “resting” on this special day.

The workers are marching into town, hooray, hooray!
They are taking a rest from work, today, today.
Some will read a book all day,
Some will go outside to play.
Oh, we’re oh so glad they could come today.




       
 

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