You know those days when planning feels like a distant dream, and you’re just trying to make it through each session with something—anything—that keeps your students engaged?
We’ve all been there. When time is short, and you feel like you’re winging it more often than not, leaning into quirky "National Day" celebrations can be a lesson planning life-saver.
From National Popcorn Day (January 19) to National Dice Day (December 4), these unexpected themes can spark fresh, low-prep speech and language activities that make your sessions both fun and functional.
Why these quirky National Day themes are a goldmine for speech language pathologists (and support easy speech therapy planning):
Built-In Themes for Planning Each day offers you a ready-made theme, like National Pancake Day (September 26) or National Bobblehead Day (January 7). Themes inspire creative activities without the need for extensive brainstorming, saving you precious time.
Engaging and Fun Celebrating fun days like National Pizza Day (February 9) instantly grabs kids' attention, making therapy something they look forward to. Engagement equals better participation.
Real-World Connections National days often connect to kids' interests or experiences, creating natural opportunities for you to build vocabulary and discuss relatable topics.
Rich Vocabulary Opportunities Each daily celebration introduces new words and concepts. For instance, on National Ice Cream Cone Day (September 22), you can explore words like "scoop," "cone," "single", "double" and "sprinkles".
Flexibility Across Goals From articulation and expressive language to social skills and fluency, you can adapt these daily themes to suit a variety of therapy goals. For example, a social skills group might role-play ordering ice cream on National Sundae Day (November 11).
Multi-sensory Experiences National days often involve props, crafts, or even snacks. For National Teddy Bear Day (September 9), you can bring in stuffed animals to practice prepositions like "on," "under," and "beside."
Conversation Starters Celebrating National Pet Day (April 11) sparks natural conversations about pets kids have or wish they had, promoting expressive language skills such as conversational turn taking, asking/answering questions and most importantly, engagement.
Fosters Collaboration Highlighting national days within mixed groups or classrooms provides opportunities for collaboration. You can collaborate with teachers on a thematic lesson, like celebrating Earth Day (April 22) with a recycling activity.
Cultural Awareness National holidays provide opportunities to discuss traditions, fostering understanding and inclusion of different cultural practices and perspectives.
Easily Accessible Resources Many websites and social media platforms share creative ideas and activities for celebrating daily holidays and celebrations, making it easy for you to find inspiration.
Turn “I Forgot to Plan” into “Best Session Ever”!
Next time you're short on planning time or looking for a fresh take on the same ol' same ol', let national days be your secret weapon. Whether it's celebrating National Tooth Fairy Day (February 28) with fun vocabulary riddles or using National Talk Like a Pirate Day (September 18) for language-rich role-playing, these quirky themes can add excitement and structure to your sessions with minimal prep.
Let's Make This Easy For You
Over time, you will find separate blog posts for each week of the month, listing popular national days along with activity ideas, links to (mostly) free resources, and book suggestions to consider using in your speech therapy sessions.
Bookmark this post and check back for new additions each week! Turn your "winging it" into "winning it" with simple (and fun) activities your students are sure to love.
Search For Fun National Days by Month
Use these quick links to view the National Days included in each week of the month
January National Days
(January links are not yet live - blog post still under construction)
Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4+ |
January 1 - 7 | January 8 - 14 | January 15 - 21 | January 22 - 31 |
New Year's Day | Argyle Day | Hat Day | Grandpa Day |
Polar Bear Plunge Day | Bubble Bath Day | Appreciate a Dragon Day | Polka Dot Day |
Apple Gifting Day | Word Nerd Day | Book Publishers Day | Pie Day |
Motivation & Inspiration Day | Static Electricity Day | Kid Inventors' Day | Compliment Day |
Science Fiction Day | Save the Eagles Day | Forest Day | Peanut Butter Day |
Drinking Straw Day | Learn Your Name in Morse Code Day | Thesaurus Day | Opposite Day |
Chocolate Covered Cherry Day | Thank You Day | Brew a Potion Day | World Environmental Education Day |
Spaghetti Day | Hot Tea Day | Good Memory Day | Bubble Wrap Appreciation Day |
Trivia Day | Work Harder Day | Popcorn Day | Chocolate Cake Day |
World Braille Day | 4th Graders Day | Elementary School Teacher's Day | Lego Day |
Bird Day | Rubber Ducky Day | Inauguration Day | Puzzle Day |
Whipped Cream Day | Sticker Day | Martin Luther King Jr Day (2025) | Draw a Dinosaur Day |
Apple Tree Day | Int'l Kite Day | Penguin Awareness Day | Backwards Day |
Bean Day | Dress Up Your Pet Day | Grandma Day | Hot Chocolate Day |
Technology Day | Hug Your Puppy Day | Scotch Tape Day | |
Bobblehead Day | |||
Old Rock Day |
February National Days
This month is not yet split up by week (but it will need to eventually)
(themes in red are not yet finished)
Freedom Day | Kite Flying Day | Gumdrop Day | Be Humble Day |
Groundhog Day | Pizza Day | World Hippo Day | Single Tasking Day |
Feed the Birds Day | Umbrella Day | Innovation Day | Tootsie Roll Day |
Sweater Day | Inventor's Day | Random Acts of Kindness | Tortilla Chip Day |
Thank a Mail Carrier Day | Make a Friend Day | Thumb Appreciation Day | Let's All Eat Right Day |
Weatherperson's Day | Hug Day | Chocolate Mint Day | Quiet Day |
Chopsticks Day | Lost Penny Day | National Comfy Day | Tell a Fairy Tale Day |
Pay a Compliment Day | Apology Day | Love Your Pet Day | Int'l Polar Bear Day |
Send a Card to a Friend Day | Mardi Gras | Muffin Day | Strawberry Day |
World Read Aloud Day | Valentine's Day | Language Day | Pancake Day |
Science Day | |||
Tooth Fairy Day | |||
Leap Day |
March National Days
Click on the week below to view the blog post dedicated to those themes
March 1 - 7 | March 8 - 14 | March 15 - 21 | March 22 - 30 |
Pig Day | Proofreading Day | Everything You Do is Wrong Day | Goof Off Day |
Share a Smile Day | Meatball Day | Panda Day | Puppy Day |
World Compliment Day | Mario Day | St. Patrick's Day | Chocolate Covered Raisin Day |
Old Stuff Day | Napping Day (Monday after Daylight Savings Day) | Global Recycling Day | Waffle Day |
National Anthem Day | Plant a Flower Day | Read to Me Day | Make Up Your Own Holiday Day |
Day of Unplugging | Earmuff Day | Let's Laugh Day | Wear a Hat Day |
Grammar Day | K9 Veterans Day | World Storytelling Day | Scribble Day |
Snack Day | Celebrate Scientists Day | Int'l Color Day | Something on a Stick Day |
Cheese Doodle Day | Children's Craft Day | World Down Syndrome Day | Int'l Mermaid Day |
Learn What Your Name Means | Learn About Butterflies Day | Pencil Day | |
Dentists Day | National Pi Day | Crayola Crayon Day | |
Oreo Cookie Day | |||
Cereal Day | |||
Sock Monkey Day |
April National Days
(April links are not yet live - blog post still under construction)
Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4+ |
April 1 - 7 | April 8 - 14 | April 15 - 21 | April 22 - 30 |
April Fool's Day | Zoo Lovers Day | ASL Day | Earth Day |
Fun Day | Unicorn Day | Rubber Eraser Day | Jelly Bean day |
Greeting Card Day | Farm Animals Day | Good Deeds Day | Picnic Day |
One Cent Day | Pet Day | Go Fly a Kite Day | Bucket List Day |
Int'l Children's Book Day | Hamster Day | Banana Day | Bus Drivers Day |
DIY Day | Grilled Cheese Sandwich Day | Animal Cracker Day | World Penguin Day |
Find a Rainbow Day | Scrabble Day | Hanging Out (the laundry) Day | Get Organized Day |
Inspiring Joy Day | Dolphin Day | Look Alike Day | Kids and Pets Day |
Int'l Carrot Day | Gardening Day | Kindergarten Day | Pretzel Day |
Dandelion Day | Look Up at the Sky Day | Tea Day | Gummi Bear Day |
Peeps Day | Tell a Story Day | ||
Library Day | Superhero Day | ||
Pajama Day | Zipper Day | ||
Geologists Day | Honesty Day | ||
Tie Dye Day |
May National Days
(May links are not yet live - blog post still under construction)
Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4+ |
May 1 - 7 | May 8 - 14 | May 15 - 21 | May 22 - 31 |
May Day | Give Someone a Cupcake Day | Bring Flowers to Someone Day | Eat More Fruits & Vegetables Day |
Mother Goose Day | Make a Book Day | Chocolate Chip day | Solitaire Day |
School Principals Day | Alphabet Magnet Day | Straw Hat Day | Sherlock Holmes Day |
Int'l Harry Potter Day | Clean Your Room Day | Drawing Day | Lucky Penny Day |
Brothers & Sisters Day | School Nurse Day | Love a Tree Day | World Turtle Day |
Space Day | Miniature Golf Day | Bike to School/Work Day | Road Trip Day |
Two Different Shoes Day | Train Day | Pizza Party Day | Scavenger Hunt Day |
Bird Day | Mother's Day | Global Accessibility Awareness | Towel Day |
Orange Juice Day | Hospital Day | No Dirty Dishes Day | Paper Airplane Day |
Weather Observers Day | Frog Jumping Day | Plant Something Day | Cellophane Tape Day |
Star Wars Day | Dance Like a Chicken Day | World Baking Day | Grape Day |
Cinco de Mayo | Be A Millionaire Day | Hamburger Day | |
Astronauts Day | Pick a Strawberry Day | Alligator Day | |
World Laughter Day | World Bee Day | Flip Flop Day | |
National Nurses Day | Eat More Fruits & Vegetables Day | Paperclip Day | |
Teacher Appreciation Day | Snail Day | ||
Tourism Day | Creativity Day | ||
Save Your Hearing Day | |||
World Parrot Day |
June National Days
(June links are not yet live - blog post still under construction)
Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4+ |
June 1 - 7 | June 8 - 14 | June 15 - 21 | June 22 - 30 |
July National Days
(July links are not yet live - blog post still under construction)
Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4+ |
July 1 - 7 | July 8 - 14 | July 15 - 21 | July 22 - 31 |
August National Days
(August links are not yet live - blog post still under construction)
Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4+ |
August 1 - 7 | August 8 - 14 | August 15 - 21 | August 22 - 31 |
September National Days
(September links are not yet live - blog post still under construction)
Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4+ |
September 1 - 7 | September 8 - 14 | September 15 - 21 | September 22 - 30 |
October National Days
(October links are not yet live - blog post still under construction)
Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4+ |
October 1 - 7 | October 8 - 14 | October 15 - 21 | October 22 - 31 |
November National Days
(November links are not yet live - blog post still under construction)
Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4+ |
November 1 - 7 | November 8 - 14 | November 15 - 21 | November 22 - 30 |
December National Days
(December links are not yet live - blog post still under construction)
Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4+ |
December 1 - 7 | December 8 - 14 | December 15 - 21 | December 22 - 31 |
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