Month of the Military Child (MOMC)
April is the Month of the Military Child and is a time to show admiration and respect for our nation's youngest heroes–military children! Military children experience on average six to nine school moves throughout their educational years as they accompany their active-duty parent(s) to military installations across the United States and abroad. They also experience frequent separations from their active-duty parent(s) due to recurring military training and/or deployments. Military children are resilient as they frequently adjust to new social norms within schools, communities, and an ever-changing support network. In April, we will celebrate our military children and their ongoing sacrifices by engaging in various activities throughout the entire month and wearing purple on April 17.
View the activities in the calendar below.
Visit the Military Connected Student Support webpage for a directory of resources.
 
Month of the Military Child Provided by PWCS & the |
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| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
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Patriotic Day Wear patriotic colors and attire
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Hats Off Day "Hats off" to our military–wear your favorite hat or head gear |
Wear It Wednesday Wear bright colors to thank our troops for helping America shine bright |
Rep Your Branch Wear your favorite shirt or sweatshirt "repping" your favorite branch of service |
R.E.D. Day "Remember Everyone Deployed" by wearing RED |
| 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
|
Patriotic Day Wear patriotic colors and attire |
Hats Off Day "Hats off" to our military–wear your favorite hat or head gear |
NO SCHOOL Observance of
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Rep Your Branch Wear your favorite shirt or sweatshirt "repping" your favorite branch of service |
R.E.D. Day "Remember Everyone Deployed" by wearing RED |
| 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 |
|
Patriotic Day Wear patriotic colors and attire |
Hats Off Day "Hats off" to our military–wear your favorite hat or head gear |
Purple Up! Day Wear PURPLE to show your support for military kids Light Up the KLC! |
Camouflage Day Wear camo like the men and women in the armed forces |
R.E.D. Day "Remember Everyone Deployed" by wearing RED |
| 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
|
Patriotic Day Wear patriotic colors and attire |
Hats Off Day "Hats off" to our military–wear your favorite hat or head gear |
Wave Your Banner Create a wave of flags by wearing a shirt with an American flag on it |
Boots on the Ground Wear your favorite boots to show your support |
R.E.D. Day "Remember Everyone Deployed" by wearing RED |
| 29 | 30 | |||
|
Patriotic Day Wear patriotic colors and attire
|
Hats Off Day "Hats off" to our military–wear your favorite hat or head gear |
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Fact Sheet on the Military Child
Did you know that:
★ Approximately two million military children have experienced a parental deployment since 2001.
There are currently 1.2 million military children of active duty members worldwide.
Nearly 80% of military children attend public schools throughout the United States.
The average military family moves three times more often than their civilian counterpart.
The repeated and extended separations and increased hazards of deployment compound stressors in military children's lives.
One third of school-age military children show psychosocial behaviors such as being anxious, worrying often, crying more frequently.
The U.S. military consists of approximately 1.4 million active duty service members and 810,000 National Guard and Selected Reserve.
Active duty military families live on or near military installations worldwide. National Guard and Reserve families might never live near a military installation, and look within their community for educational services, friendship and support.
A positive school environment, built upon caring relationships among all participants-students, teachers, staff, administrators, parents and community members-has been shown to impact not only academic performance but also positively influence emotions and behaviors of students.
Supporting the military child takes a schoolwide effort, and professional development opportunities to inform school staff of the academic and social-emotional challenges military children face.
~ Retrieved from AASA-The School Superintendents Association ~
Celebrating Military Students & Families
Department of Defense Education Activity (DODEA)
Virginia Department of Education (VDOE)
Toolkits
Military Child Education Coalition (MCEC)®
Resources:
American Red Cross Reconnection Workshops–
| Bloom: Empowering the Military Teen Bloom is where you can find comfort and advice about everything military kid related-from moving tips to the top things to do at your duty station. Bloom was co-founded by teens who grew up in military families. This website provides posts from featured authors, often other military kids who want to share their stories and connect with their community; and it also includes: Videos, quizzes, art, surveys, blogs on military life, moving, people, experiences, and much more. |
| PWCS Military-Connected Students: In Their Own Words (YouTube) |