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National Holidays Worksheets for Kindergarten

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A poster of nine national holidays, calendar cards, a picture quiz, read-alouds for five holidays including Juneteenth, and draw and write pages, with keys.

Download the national holidays worksheets

Holidays through the year

A poster of nine national holidays in calendar order, from New Year's Day to Thanksgiving, a picture quiz and calendar cards to color and cut.

Holiday read-alouds

Short, factual read-alouds with picture questions for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents' Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day and Thanksgiving, in calendar order.

  • Preview of the printable “Martin luther king Jr. day Read-Aloud” worksheet: listening to a story about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and answering questionsView all 2 pages

    Martin luther king Jr. day Read-Aloud

    Listening to a story about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and answering questions

    Answer key on page 2

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    2 pages97 KB

  • Preview of the printable “Presidents' day Read-Aloud” worksheet: listening to facts about Presidents' Day, George Washington and Abraham LincolnView all 2 pages

    Presidents' day Read-Aloud

    Listening to facts about Presidents' Day, George Washington and Abraham Lincoln

    Answer key on page 2

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    2 pages251 KB

  • Preview of the printable “Juneteenth Read-Aloud” worksheet: listening to a story about Juneteenth, a day to celebrate freedom, and answering questionsView all 2 pages

    Juneteenth Read-Aloud

    Listening to a story about Juneteenth, a day to celebrate freedom, and answering questions

    Answer key on page 2

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    2 pages175 KB

Draw and write

Children draw and finish a sentence: what they are thankful for, their dream for a better world, a thank-you card for a veteran, a thank-you to a worker and their favorite holiday.

Print at 100% (actual size) for the cleanest tracing lines.

About these national holidays worksheets

National holidays are days the whole country remembers together. These kindergarten worksheets cover nine of them with plain, factual language: New Year's Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents' Day, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Veterans Day and Thanksgiving. Each holiday gets one simple line about why we have it.

Start with the national holidays poster, which lists the holidays in order through the year with the date or the day each one falls on. The calendar cards can be colored, cut out and added to your class calendar as each holiday comes around, and the picture quiz is a quick review.

When a holiday is near, use its read-aloud. The passages for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents' Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day and Thanksgiving each end with picture questions. Draw and write pages let children respond in their own way: what they are thankful for, their own dream for a better world, a thank-you card for a veteran, a thank-you to a worker on Labor Day, and their favorite holiday. Every page with one right answer has an answer key on page 2.

Standards

  • C3 D2.His.1.K-2Create a chronological sequence of multiple events.
  • C3 D2.His.3.K-2Generate questions about individuals and groups who have shaped significant historical changes and continuities.
  • C3 D2.Civ.2.K-2Explain how all people, not just official leaders, play important roles in a community.
  • C3 D2.Civ.8.K-2Describe democratic principles such as equality, fairness, and respect for legitimate authority and rules.
  • C3 D2.Civ.14.K-2Describe how people have tried to improve their communities over time.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.K.2Confirm understanding of a text read aloud or information presented orally or through other media by asking and answering questions about key details and requesting clarification if something is not understood.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.K.1Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to compose opinion pieces in which they tell a reader the topic or the name of the book they are writing about and state an opinion or preference about the topic or book (e.g., My favorite book is . . .).

How to use them

  1. Hang the poster near your calendar and point to each holiday as it comes up.
  2. Color and cut out the calendar cards. Add each card to the class calendar a week before the holiday.
  3. Read the matching read-aloud the week of the holiday, then read the questions while children circle answers.
  4. Mail or deliver the veteran thank-you cards, or share them with a veteran in your school community.
  5. Use the picture quiz at the end of the year as a review of all the holidays.

Teaching tips

  • Four holidays move each year because they fall on a set Monday: Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents' Day, Memorial Day and Labor Day. Thanksgiving is always a Thursday.
  • Memorial Day and Veterans Day are different. On Memorial Day we remember people who died while serving in the military. On Veterans Day we thank everyone who has served.
  • The official name of Presidents' Day is Washington's Birthday. Many people use the day to honor all presidents.
  • Juneteenth, June 19, marks the day in 1865 when news reached Galveston, Texas, that the enslaved people there were free. Keep the talk simple: it is a day to celebrate freedom.
  • Families celebrate many other special days. Invite children to share the days that matter to their family.
  • On the writing lines, children trace the dotted starter and then finish the sentence.

Questions teachers and parents ask

What national holidays do kindergartners learn about?

This set covers nine: New Year's Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents' Day, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Veterans Day and Thanksgiving. The poster shows all nine in order through the year with one simple line each.

What is the difference between Memorial Day and Veterans Day?

Memorial Day, the last Monday in May, remembers the people who died while serving in the military. Veterans Day, November 11, thanks everyone who has served in the military.

How do you explain Juneteenth to kindergarten?

Keep it short and true: long ago, some people were enslaved and were not free. On June 19, 1865, news reached Galveston, Texas, that the enslaved people there were free. Juneteenth is a day to celebrate freedom. The Juneteenth read-aloud says this in kindergarten words.

Are there answer keys?

Yes. The picture quiz and every read-aloud page have an answer key on page 2 of the PDF. The draw and write pages and calendar cards have no single right answer.