30,000 Stitches Book Pairing 9/11 Remembrance Quilt Activity

The book “30,000 Stitches: The Inspiring Story of the National 9/11 Flag” by Amanda Davis is a story that embodies the unity and strength of the American people as they journeyed to stitch back together the fabric of a tattered American flag that previously flew at Ground Zero.

Your students will be interested to hear the many stories that are shared throughout the text as stories that are stitched into the fabric of the flag. Through discussion, encourage students to expand upon their thinking and relate the text to their own lives, classrooms, and the wider context of America.

After reading, have students respond to the text by making their own paper version of a quilt square where they share more about how their lives are stitched into the context of the classroom and American community. Student are encouraged to share something that they feel comfortable sharing about who they are & how that makes up the larger sense of community – just as we all came together to stitch the fabric of the National 9/11 flag, we all come together in this way too.

Students might share about anything they are comfortable with — from how their family are immigrants to this country or how they spend every summer playing ping pong tournaments with their neighbors. I encourage you to share something too, as the teacher, to model the thinking and activity for students.

After students respond to the text, you will collaboratively put together each individual “quilt square” to make a community quilt, similarly to how they did with the flag. This can be hung in the classroom or hallway!

This product is available on TPT for easy downloading and use. Please share your classroom quilt with my over at @schoolwithjules on Instagram!