Happy Birthday, Mr. Lincoln!

Yes, I know President’s Day isn’t until Monday, but today is Abraham Lincoln’s actual birthday. Back when I was growing up, we used to get two days off from school instead of just one, because we celebrated Washington’s and Lincoln’s birthdays separately.

And it is in that spirit this post is written.

Ideas for Celebrating Lincoln’s Birthday

• Memorize Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address

  My children memorized the Gettysburg Address last year, so we’ll start the day by reviewing that.

  

• Read Some of Lincoln’s Quotes

  I’ve posted a few of my favorites, including one to color, here: Abraham Lincoln on Choosing Sides

  

• Color a Picture of Abraham Lincoln

  Next, we have a free printable coloring page featuring a wonderful quote by President Lincoln.

  

  If your kids finish that one and are begging for more, here’s another Lincoln quote to color.

  

• Read a Biography of Lincoln’s Life

  For younger children interested in learning about Lincoln, it’s hard to beat this beautifully illustrated biography by Ingri and Edgar Parin D’Aulaire.

  

• Complete our Lincoln Worksheet

  Test how much you know about our 16th president (or how closely your kids were paying attention to the book you just read) by completing this fill-in-the-blan worksheet on Lincoln’s life.

  

• Build a Log Cabin

  Today would also be a great day for building with Lincoln Logs — a toy that has been a longtime favorite of my kids:

  

  

• Draw a Picture of Abraham Lincoln

Or how about drawing a portrait of Lincoln? You’ll find simple instructions for doing so on wikihow.com: How To Draw Abe Lincoln. [Update: sadly, this sweet tutorial has recently been removed. Cancel culture strikes again. Fortunately, I took a screenshot of the sample, in case you want to use that as a pattern for your own drawing.]



For students interested in doing even more realistic portraits, I use (and love) the Draw Today Program to teach my kids. It’s a little hard to find these days, but very easy to follow. Lincoln’s is one of the first portraits students are asked to draw in this program. One of my sons won a blue ribbon at the State Fair on that assignment several years back.

For more fun ideas for celebrating Lincoln’s birthday, check out my President’s Day Pinterest Board.

More American Heritage Printables

Want more fun printables for folks who love America and long for it to be great again? You can browse through all of our past patriotic posts by following this link: American Heritage Printables. And for more great quotes from our past commanders-in-chief, check out this President’s Day post.

Or maybe you’d prefer a bound volume. If so, check out my devotional journals. The one in the center of the lineup below, God Bless America, was made just for patriotic citizens like you.

Packed with inspiring thoughts from our founding fathers and other great Americans, this journal will inspire you to think deeply about what it means to be a citizen of this great country. What is our responsibility to the rest of the world? How do we ensure the guiding principles on which our nation was established are never forgotten? Consider how you feel about these matters and use the space provided to write down your thoughts.