Today’s selection to help us prepare for Veterans Day is Ambrose Bierce’s short story, “A Son of the Gods.” Bierce (1842–1913 [?]) was an American journalist, critic, and author whose acid wit and dark view of human nature earned him the nickname “Bitter Bierce.” After working as a printer’s apprentice in his youth, he enlisted in the Ninth Indiana Volunteer Infantry at the outset of the Civil War, fighting in … Read more »
With Veterans Day just around the corner, we’re using this week to feature resources from our Veterans Day ebook, “The Meaning of Veterans Day,” to help us better understand the meaning of the holiday and how to properly observe it. So today: some history. (Be sure to check out all our Veterans Day stories, speeches, and songs here.)
On the morning of November 11, 1918, after four years of … Read more »
Each November 11, our nation commemorates Veterans Day. But what does the holiday mean, and how do we properly observe it? What So Proudly We Hail has recently published a new ebook to help readers and educators explore these questions. The collection of stories, speeches, and songs examines the evolving meaning of Veterans Day, with selections by American authors such as Ambrose Bierce, Ernest Hemingway, Read more »
Thought Columbus Day had already passed? Well, you would be right to think so–but did you know that for much of its history Columbus Day was celebrated on October 12? As we noted in our history of Columbus Day, it was on the morning of October 12, 1492, that the lookout on the Pinta first saw the New World. In 1866, Italian-Americans in New York City marked the day–October 12–by celebrating … Read more »
Distinguished scholar-teachers Amy and Leon Kass demonstrate how short stories, speeches, and songs can be used to enhance civic education and how a pedagogical approach that stresses learning through inquiry can make primary sources come alive for students of all ages.
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“What a wonderful collection of American songs, speeches, and stories. It should be valuable for teachers, students, parents, and readers of all kinds.”
— Diane Ravitch