Every month is chock full of seemingly random holidays and appreciation days you might never have heard of. From the light-hearted National Donut Day on June 2nd to the more serious World Sickle Cell Day on June 19th. The coming months have an array of celebration days that come in all levels of seriousness. The summer months have some exciting opportunities to introduce kids to elements of that natural world as summer is kicking into full gear!
Over the next two months celebrations of nature and fun activities include Oceans Week, Rabbit Awareness Week, National Black Bear Day, World Reef Day, June Bug Day, International Lynx Day, World Sea Turtle Day, Clean Beaches Week, National Blueberry Day, and truly so many more!!!
Appreciation Days as Inspiration
Now, no one could truly be expected to keep track of ALL these appreciate and awareness days. However, if there is something your child has a specific interest in, there’s probably a day for it! These days can also be an excuse to plan a trip to the zoo or aquarium. They can be a great chance to learn something about a new animal or start a family activity. I personally can’t think of a better way to celebrate eggplant month than seeing if we can successfully grow eggplants!
There is no pressure to feel like you have to make something of every single appreciation day. They are just a jumping off point to get creative with your kids. And introductions to some of these new things could be as simple as watching a video on sea turtles. Who knows, you might help your child discover their next passion!
There are loads of opportunities that you can use to get outside, explore the world around you, and engage your child’s natural curiosity. If any of these days really excite you, you can share all about it with your child’s teachers through ChildWatch’s software.
Sparking Deeper Conversation
Just as there are days for kittens and cows, there are also days dedicated to the more serious topics. If you, or someone in your family is dealing with an illness or issue that is difficult to discuss with children, a national awareness day can be a good place to start. This can be an opportunity to read a book on the topic, watch a video, or start the family conversation. Yes, it will just be the beginning, but it’s never too late to start.
Declare Your Own Day
Every family has natural days the come up: birthdays, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, etc. But take some advice from the calendar, you can make a day out of anything! If there’s something your family loves, make a down out of it! An opportunity to celebrate and make memories together is something that your children will treasure for the rest of their lives. Every July 17th could be We Love Rainier Cherries Day in your household (but only if you love rainier cherries of course.). The sky is the limit!
The true beauty of appreciation days is they give us the opportunity to step out of the daily grind with our kids. When we can take a step back and mark a moment, even a tiny one, as special, we make memories for a lifetime!