Patriotism

Another way to say that we love our country is to say that we have allegiance to our country. When you have allegiance to something, it means that you are on its side. What does allegiance look like? Here’s an example of a time that you may have felt allegiance towards someone. Perhaps you saw your little brother getting picked on at a playground. You would show your allegiance to your brother by standing up for him and telling the other children to stop. You are on your brother’s side because you love him, and he is part of your family. People can have allegiance to their country, too. Perhaps you have heard of something called the Pledge of Allegiance. This is an oath, or a promise, to our country.

When we say the Pledge of Allegiance, we stand up, put our right hand over our heart, and look at the American flag.

We do this to show respect for our country. Then, we say the Pledge of Allegiance. Can you read it below?

"I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America,

and to the republic for which it stands,

one nation under God, indivisible,

with liberty and justice for all."

Do you know what all those words mean? There are a lot of new words that can be tricky to understand. Let’s look at each line, one at a time, so that we understand what we are saying.

The first line of the Pledge of Allegiance says:

“I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America”

We already learned that a pledge is like a promise, or an oath and that allegiance means to be devoted and loyal. What are we pledging allegiance to? Click the picture to answer the question!

What are we pledging allegiance to?

We look at the flag because we are pledging allegiance to the flag! That means we are devoted to our country because our flag represents our country. Click the picture below that shows our country.

Yes! This is the United States of America.

Incorrect. This is South America, not the United States of America.

The first line of the pledge means we are making a promise to be devoted to our country! That shows patriotism.

The next line says:

“…and to the republic for which it stands,”

So, we are pledging allegiance to the flag and the republic. The republic represents the American people living in our country. Click the two pictures below that show what we pledge allegiance to when we say the Pledge of Allegiance.

No. We do not pledge allegiance to a school building. Try again!

Yes! This picture shows the people who live in America!

Correct! We pledge allegiance to the flag that represents our country!

The first two lines of the Pledge of Allegiance explain that we promise to be loyal to our country and to the American people!

The next line in the pledge says:

“one nation, under God, indivisible”

This means that Americans are all part of one group and that we cannot be separated. Even though we are made up of a lot of different cultures, we are all part of the same country. We want to work together as a team and help each other!

Working together as a team makes us good citizens of our country!

The last part of the pledge says:

“with liberty and justice for all.”

There are two big words in that line, liberty and justice.

Liberty means we are free to make our own choices. Someone else does make choices for us, but we decide what we want to do with our life and make a plan so that it can happen! That is liberty!

Imagine that you wanted to have a lemonade stand in the summer to earn money for something you really wanted.

You are so excited about your idea and how this can help you reach your goal! But you were told you were not allowed to have your own lemonade stand. How would that make you feel? You would probably feel a lot like the picture below!

We would not be very happy living in a place where we did not have freedom. Because our country has liberty for all, we can do things like have our own lemonade stand!

Justice means to be fair and to have the same rules for everyone. Having justice in our country makes it a peaceful place to live. There are consequences for wrong choices in our society, and the people who enforce justice make sure those consequences happen. We enjoy living in a fair and just society!

Imagine that your whole soccer team got ice cream after a game that you won. But you were the only one who did not get any. Is that fair?

No! There is no reason for you to be the only one who cannot have ice cream. Justice is fairness for everyone! We are so glad to live in a country that has justice!

That is the whole Pledge of Allegiance! Let’s say it again and use the pictures to help us remember what we learned!

I pledge allegiance to the flag

of the United States of America,

and to the republic for which it stands,

one nation under God, indivisible,

with liberty and justice for all.

Great job learning the Pledge of Allegiance! Can you say it to someone in your family and tell them what it means?