How to Connect Students with Veterans on Veterans Day

Veterans Day is a time to honor and thank those who have served our country. It’s also a great opportunity to learn more about the world they have defended. It’s easy to incorporate geography & history. I have had my students adopt a soldier or Veteran. They were asked to write a “thank you” letter for their service. Many students have friends and family members who are veterans or soldiers in the military. Some of these family members and friends are currently serving and have faced conflict and war to defend our freedoms. The least we could do is thank them.

The Assignment

I would assign my students to cooperative groups. Together, they would compose a thank you letter to a solder or Veteran. For extra credit, they could work outside class to put together a gift box that we would mail out. I required that students put the school’s address on the envelope and the return location for safety — if it was snail mail. Also, they were to only include their first name, omitting their last name from the letter. We also took a group picture that could be included in the letter. I would print out enough for each group across seven classes. This way, the soldier or Veteran could have an idea of who was thanking them. With so many students unfamiliar on how to address an envelope or even write a thank you letter, this is a learning opportunity that they may not get otherwise. It also teaches gratitude for other’s sacrifices.

Sometimes, the recipients would write back and when they did, oh boy, the students were excited! We would read it in class, so everyone could have the experience.

Where can you find soldiers and Veterans? Below are some organizations that offer Pen Pals: (Click on the links to learn about each opportunity and how each works.)

Heal Vets: A website that can connect you with veterans who want pen pals. You can contact Heal Vets to get a list of veterans or donate to the organization to receive back correspondence.
Veterans.com Soldier’s Angels is a non-profit organization with a global volunteer network across all 50 states, and many locations overseas. The Soldier’s Angels Letter Writing Team program asks volunteers to commit to a three-month letter-writing initiative. Volunteers write “a one-time letter” to a service member “waiting for adoption.” This is part of a program that adopts service members who are deployed. Team volunteers are, “required to write a minimum of one letter per month, but can write many more during the month if they choose”.
Veteran Pen Pal Project: A nonprofit organization that connects volunteers with veterans.
Any Soldier: A website that lists military personnel looking for pen pals.
Forgotten Soldiers Outreach: A website that lists military personnel looking for pen pals. This one is easy. You can have your student go directly to the site. They can write a letter or message that will be sent to a soldier.
Your Local USO: A local organization that should be able to help you find a veteran to pen pal.

Writing this has given me the “itch”. I think, tonight, I will write a message to a veteran and soldier. Let me get to writing! ✏️ 💻 🗒️

We would love to hear what you do in your classroom for Veteran’s Day. Let’s collaborate and share. Leave a comment below telling us your plan for Monday, November 11.

Don’t Feel Prepare For This Activity on Monday?

If you don’t feel prepared to have your students write letters to veterans and soldiers, consider other available lessons. You can find them in our stores on Teachers Pay Teachers, Amped Up Learning, Classful & TeachShare. Grab one of these instead, or both! They will be on sale Sunday & Monday on TPT.