June 2014 Calendar Observances and Activities

This post contains calendar observances and themed activities for June 2014. If you’d like an updated calendar for any year, you can find it in my June Themed Activities for Kids. This calendar is different because the calendar observances with changing dates are added into the list of June dates, making it less likely that you’ll miss an event.

I love using unit studies and themed activities for holidays and calendar observances. You’ll find all my unit studies and holiday posts in my “Should You Use Unit Studies?” post. You might choose to plan unit studies based on your child’s interests. Many unit studies, such as a dinosaur unit or transportation unit, work well at any time of the year.

Some unit studies naturally fit best into specific seasons or months. And many others can be used at any time but are extra fun when combined with a holiday or calendar observance.

You’ll find more links for calendar observances in my “Enliven Your Homeschool with Some Calendar Fun” post. The post has links to resources for calendar observances for any level. I mainly focus here on June themes for preschoolers through early elementary, although you’ll find calendar observances here for any age.

Monthly Observances for June

Monthly observances can be used for themed activities throughout the month or for one or two weeks during the month.

• National Accordion Awareness Month
• Adopt-A–Cat Month
• African-American Music Appreciation Month
• Aquarium Month
• Audiobook Awareness Month
• Cancer from the Sun Month
• Candy Month
• National Caribbean-American Heritage Month
• Child Vision Awareness Month
• International Childhood Cancer Awareness Month
• Children’s Awareness Month
• Dairy Month
• Dairy Alternatives Month
• Effective Communications Month
• Entrepreneurs “Do It Yourself” Marketing Month
• National Fresh Fruit and Vegetables Month – Montessori-Inspired Vegetable Unit, Montessori-Inspired Fruit Unit, Montessori-Inspired Food Art, Kids’ Food Fun Pinterest Board
• Great Outdoors Month – Montessori-Inspired Outdoor Environment
• Perennial Gardening Month – Friendship Flower Activities, Free Montessori Botany Materials for a Gardening Unit, Montessori-Inspired Gardening Unit, Montessori-Inspired Flower Activities, Free Flower Printables and Montessori-Inspired Flower Math Activities, Gardening/Botany Unit Study Board
• Rebuild Your Life Month
• National Rivers Month
• Rose Month
• National Safety Month
• National Smile Month – Go on a Smile Hunt with Your Child and Montessori-Inspired Dental Health Unit
• Skyscraper Month
• Soul Food Month, Natl
• Sports America Kids Month – Can Montessori Principles Be Used to Teach P.E.?
• Student Safety Month
• International Surf Music Month

June Dates that Can Be Used for Themed Activities

Calendar observances are great for mini units or even units that might last the whole month.

• June 1: National Go Barefoot Day
• June 1: Dare Day
• June 1: Flip a Coin Day
• June 1: International Children’s Day – Montessori-Inspired Little Passports Activities
• June 2: Radio was Patented, 1896
• June 3: First U.S. Space Walk By Ed White, 1965 – Astronaut Unit
• June 3: Repeat Day
• June 4: National Running Day (1st Wednesday in June)
• June 4: Aesop’s Birthday – Montessori-Inspired Activities for the Tortoise and the Hare
• June 4: National Hug Your Cat Day (Some sites list May 30 as National Hug a Cat Day … celebrate both days!)
• June 4: Henry Ford made his first operational car, 1896 – Montessori-inspired Transportation Unit
• June 5: World Environment Day – Free 3-Part Recycle Cards, Montessori-Inspired Earth Day Activities, Montessori-Inspired Activities for Earth Day Every Day, Montessori-Inspired Earth Day Activities (2012), Montessori-Inspired Lorax Activities, Free Earth Day Printables and Activities, and Montessori Inspired Arbor Day Activities
• June 5: National Gingerbread Day
• June 5: First Apple II computers sold, 1977
• June 5: Richard Scarry born, 1919 (For a thorough children’s author birthday calendar, see the right sidebar of Happy Birthday Author)
• June 5:  First Hot Air Balloon Flight By the Montgolfier brothers, 1783
• June 6: D Day, WWII
• June 6: National Gardening Exercise Day – Activity of the Week – Friendship Flower Activities, Free Montessori Botany Materials for a Gardening Unit, Montessori-Inspired Gardening Unit, Montessori-Inspired Flower Activities, Free Flower Printables and Montessori-Inspired Flower Math Activities, Gardening/Botany Unit Study Board
• June 6: National Yo-Yo Day
• June 7: National Chocolate Ice Cream Day
• June 8: World Oceans Day – Montessori-Inspired Ocean Unit, Montessori-Inspired Beach Language Activities, Montessori-Inspired Resources for World Oceans Day, Montessori-Inspired Ocean Math Activities, Shark Unit Study, Montessori-Inspired Turtle Activities, Ocean Unit Study Pinterest Board
• June 8: Best Friends Day
• June 8: Frank Lloyd Wright Born, 1867
• June 10: Maurice Sendak Born, 1928
• June 11: Corn on the Cob Day
• June 12: Anne Frank Born, 1929 – Famous People Influenced by Montessori
• June 12: Baseball was Invented, 1839 – Montessori-Inspired Activities for Casey at the Bat
• June 13: Friday the 13th
• June 14: National Flag Day (U.S.) – Kids’ Flag Day Activities on Pinterest
• June 14: National Get Outdoors Day (2nd Saturday in June) – Montessori-Inspired Outdoor Environment, Less Screen Time/More Family- and Outdoor Time, Exploring Nature Pinterest Board, Outdoor Classroom Pinterest Board
• June 14 Caldecott Medal First Awarded, 1938
• June 14: “Pop Goes the Weasel” Day
• June 14: Sandpaper Invented, 1834 – Inexpensive and DIY Sandpaper Letters and Inexpensive and DIY Sandpaper Numerals
• June 14: Author Bruce Degen Born, 1945
• June 14: World Juggler’s Day (Saturday closest to June 17)
• June 14: Strawberry Shortcake Day
• June 15: Father’s Day (3rd Sunday in June) – Montessori-Inspired Father’s Day, Talking with Children about Death: Creating an “I Remember” Book (with free printables for children who’ve had a special male relative die and for children from military families and other families separated by distance), Montessori-Inspired Father’s Day (2012), Handprint Keepsake for Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, or Grandparents Day, Father’s Day Ideas Pinterest Board
• June 15: Fly a Kite Day, Ben Franklin’s Kite Experiment, 1752 – Free Kite Printables and Montessori-Inspired Kite Activities
• June 15: Power of a Smile Day – Go on a Smile Hunt with Your Child
• June 16: National Fudge Day
• June 17: Eat Your Vegetables Day – Montessori-Inspired Vegetable Unit, Kids’ Food Fun Pinterest Board
• June 18: International Picnic Day
• June 18: Go Fishing Day
• June 18: National Splurge Day
• June 19: Juneteenth Day
• June 19: World Sauntering Day
• June 20: American Eagle Day
• June 20: Ice Cream Soda Day
• June 21: First Day of Summer (Summer Solstice) – Montessori-Inspired Summer Playdough Activities, Montessori-Inspired Activities for Casey at the Bat, Summer Fun Pinterest Board
• June 21: World Music Day – Montessori-Inspired Music Appreciation, Montessori-Inspired Music Appreciation: Peter and the Wolf, Montessori-Inspired Music Appreciation: Swan Lake, Montessori-Inspired Music Appreciation: Carnival of the Animals, Montessori-Inspired Activities for the Tortoise and the Hare, Montessori-Inspired Activities for Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, Montessori-Inspired Music Appreciation: The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, Montessori-Inspired Activities for Casey at the Bat, Kids’ Music Activities Pinterest Board
• June 22: US Department of Justice Established, 1870
• June 23: National Pink Day
• June 25: Eric Carle Born, 1929 – Montessori-Inspired Eric Carle Activities
• June 25: World Vitiligo Day
• June 26: Forgiveness Day
• June 26: National Chocolate Pudding Day
• June 26: Bicycle Patented, 1819
• June 26: Toothbrush Invented, 1498 – Montessori-Inspired Dental Health Unit
• June 27: Captain Kangaroo (Bob Keeshan) Born, 1927
• June 27: Helen Keller Born, 1880
• June 27: Melody for “Happy Birthday” Song Written, 1859
• June 28: Great American Backyard Campout Day (4th Saturday in June)
• June 28: Paul Bunyan Day
• June 29: Ramadan Begins
• June 29: Hug Holiday Day
• June 29: Camera Day – Montessori-Inspired Photography for Kids
• June 30: Meteor Day – Montessori-Inspired Astronomy Activities and Montessori-Inspired Solar System Activities

Prepare for a Big Holiday in Early July

July 4: Independence Day (USA) – Child-Led Patriotism, Montessori-Inspired Fun with Golf Balls and Ping Pong Balls, Montessori-Inspired Patriotic Unit, Montessori-Inspired 4th of July Activities, Patriotic Practical Life and Math Activities, Kids’ Patriotic Activities (U.S.) Pinterest Board

Have a happy June!

Image at the top of the post by Tatjana Rittner

Free Printable June Calendar from iMom

Learn more about Montessori at Home or School: How to Teach Grace and Courtesy!

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