National Day Themes in June - Week 2: Creative Ideas for Kids in Speech Therapy
- shannon | speech hamster
- Apr 26
- 16 min read
June 8 - 14
The second week of June brings a mix of meaningful, playful, and practical themes that fit right into your speech therapy sessions. Find ideas that are designed to keep students engaged while focusing on their speech and language goals.
Welcome to National Days in June Week 2! The week begins with connection-focused themes like National Best Friends Day (June 8) and Say “Hi” Day (June 11), which naturally support social communication, conversation skills, and peer interaction. You’ll also find hands-on opportunities with National Meal Prep Day (June 9) and National Frosted Cookie Day (June 10), making it easy to build vocabulary, sequencing, and describing into your sessions.
This blog post contains affiliate links, which means I receive a commission if you make a purchase through them, with no extra cost to you.
Use the table below to explore some of the national days celebrated the second week in June. To avoid scrolling fatigue, use the quick links to view activity ideas and book suggestions for each theme.
View other weeks in June:
June National Days Week 1 (June 1 - 7)
June National Days Week 3 (June 15 - 21)
June National Days Week 4+ (June 22 - 30): coming soon
To view themes for all 12 months head over to 10 Reasons to Use National Day Themes for Easy Speech Therapy Planning.
*Free resource links listed here may change over time. Please check the original source for current availability and terms.
June National Days Week 2
Date | National Day Quick Links |
June 8 | |
June 9 | |
June 10 | |
June 11 | |
June 12 | |
June 13 | |
June 14 |
June 8
💛 National Best Friends Day (June 8)
About: National Best Friends Day celebrates the special people in our lives who make us laugh, listen, and feel supported. It’s a great reminder to appreciate friendships and the ways we care for one another.
Fun Facts:
The term “best friend” became popular in the 1800s.
Spending time with friends can help people feel happier and less stressed.
Many animals, like elephants and dolphins, also form strong friendships.
Friends often share similar interests, but differences can make friendships stronger too.
Friendship Tower Build: Use blocks, cups, or stacking items. Each correct production adds to a shared tower. This activity encourages teamwork with high repetition.
Friendship Anagram: How many words can students create using the letters in the word "friendship"?
WH-Question Friendship Cards: Create question cards to pair with a board game or similar. Students answer and expand with details.
Who: Who is your best friends? Who do you like to play with at school? Who helps you when you feel sad?
What: What do you like to do with your friends?, What makes someone a good friend? What is your favorite game to play with a friend?
When: When do you usually play with your friends?, When do you talk to your friends during the day?, When is a good time to help a friend?
Where: Where do you like to play with your friends?, Where do you sit with your friends at school?, Where is a fun place to go with a friend?
Why: Why is it important to be a good friend?, Why do friends say kind words to each other? Why should you share with a friend?
How: How do you make a new friend?, How do you help a friend who is upset?, How do you ask someone to play with you?
What if: What if your friend is feeling sad?, What if your friend doesn't want to play your game? What if you and your friend both want the same toy?
Describe Your Friend: Students describe a friend using attributes like appearance, personality, and favorite activities. Extend by comparing two friends using similar/different.
Friendship Categories Game: Name categories like “things friends do,” “places friends go,” or “games to play together.” Students take turns adding items to each group.
Story Time: A Day with My Friend: Students create a short story about spending time with a friend using beginning, middle, and end structure.
Free Resources: Check out these friendship freebies on Teachers Pay Teachers.
Popular Children's Books:
Should I Share My Ice Cream? – Written and illustrated by Mo Willems: Elephant Gerald gets a delicious cone but isn’t sure if he should share it with Piggie. This simple, expressive story gently explores decision-making and friendship. 📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud] 🛒 [Free Resources on TpT]
How Do Dinosaurs Play with Their Friends? – Written by Jane Yolen, illustrated by Mark Teague: This playful book shows both good and not-so-great ways to treat friends. Through humor and examples, it highlights positive social behaviors. 📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud] 🛒 [Free Resource on TpT]
Stick and Stone – Written by Beth Ferry, illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld: Stick and Stone become fast friends and help each other through challenges, showing what it means to be kind and supportive. The simple text and strong message make it an easy-to-follow story about friendship and teamwork. 📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud] 🛒 [Free Resources on TpT]
June 9
🍱 National Meal Prep Day (June 9)
About: National Meal Prep Day encourages planning and preparing meals ahead of time. The day was created in the 2010s as part of a growing focus on healthy habits, organization, and making busy routines more manageable.
Fun Facts:
Meal prepping can help reduce food waste by using ingredients more efficiently.
People often prepare meals for several days at once.
Containers used for meal prep are designed to keep food fresh and organized.
Planning meals ahead can save both time and money.
Build-a-Meal Articulation Station: Place pictures of foods under cards with target words. Students “build” a meal by practicing each word/phrase/sentence before adding it to their plate.
Step-by-Step Chef Sequencing: Have students sequence simple recipes (e.g., making a sandwich, cupcakes, or a favorite snack) using first, next, then, last.
WH-Question Recipe Cards: Use prompts like “What do you need?” “Where do you cook?” “Who helps you?” tied to simple meal prep scenarios.
Describe the Dish: Use pictures of meals and have students describe them to each other using categories (mealtime), attributes (hot/cold, crunchy/soft), and ingredients. How many clues will it take for someone to guess the correct meal?
Meal Category Sort: Sort foods into categories like breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack, fruits, vegetables, proteins, and grains.
Popular Children's Books:
Lunch – Written and illustrated by Denise Fleming: This simple, rhythmic book follows a mouse preparing and eating lunch step by step. The repetitive structure makes it great for early sequencing and vocabulary. 📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud] 🛒 [Free Resource on TpT]
Stone Soup – Retold by Jon J. Muth: Hungry travelers show villagers how sharing ingredients can create a wonderful meal. This classic tale emphasizes cooperation, generosity, and problem-solving. 📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud] 🛒 [Free Resources on TpT]
The Sandwich Swap – Written by Queen Rania of Jordan Al Abdullah, illustrated by Tricia Tusa: Two friends argue over their very different lunches until they learn to appreciate each other’s food. This story highlights friendship, culture, and trying new things. 📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud] 🛒 [Free Resources on TpT]
June 10
✏️ National Ballpoint Pen Day (June 10)
About: National Ballpoint Pen Day recognizes the invention of the pen used by millions of people every day. It’s a simple tool that helps us write, draw, and share ideas. It is observed on June 10 to honor László Bíró, who patented the ballpoint pen in 1943.
Fun Facts:
The ballpoint pen was invented in the 1930s by László Bíró.
The tiny ball at the tip rolls ink onto the paper as you write.
Ballpoint pens are less likely to smudge than some other types of pens.
Pen vs. Pencil Compare & Contrast: Have students compare writing tools using attributes (hard/soft, erasable/not erasable, color, use).
Take It Apart: Pen Investigation: Carefully take apart a ballpoint pen (teacher-guided). Identify and describe each part (cap, spring, ink tube, tip). Discuss what each part does and put it back together if possible.
Pen Point Articulation Practice: Write target words on paper and have students trace or circle each word (or track how many words using hashmarks) with a pen after saying it correctly.
What Else Could It Be? Imagination Game: After reading "Not a Stick" (see below), show a ballpoint pen and ask students to think of other things it could be (e.g., a magic wand, a rocket, a microphone). Students explain their ideas using complete sentences.
Pass the Pen Story: Students pass a pen around the group. When they receive it, they add one sentence to a shared story. Great for narratives, sequencing, and turn-taking.
Fix the Sentence Editor: Write silly or incorrect sentences (e.g., “The dog run fast yesterday”). Students use a pen to “fix” them and say the corrected sentence aloud.
Maze: Grab Speech Path Creative's free mazes for irregular plurals activity on TpT.
Draw & Describe Challenge: Students draw a simple picture using a pen and then describe what they created using full sentences and details - OR - students draw a looping scribble on paper, then add color to each enclosed shape while practicing speech/language targets. You can also turn this into a color by number activity.
Popular Children's Books:
Not a Stick – Written by Antoinette Portis: A pig proves that a stick is not always just a stick. Whether it's conducting an orchestra, painting a masterpiece, or slaying a dragon...give a child a stick and let imagination take over and the magic begin. 📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud] 🛒 [Free Resources on TpT]
Ish – Written and illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds: A young boy learns that art doesn’t have to be perfect and that creativity is all about expression. 📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud] 🛒 [Free Resources on TpT]
The Dot - Written and illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds: Vashti believes she can’t draw until her teacher encourages her to just make a mark .. a simple dot.. which leads to a journey of self-expression and creativity. 📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud] 🛒 [Free Resources on TpT]
🍪 National Frosted Cookie Day (June 10)
About: National Frosted Cookie Day celebrates cookies topped with sweet, colorful frosting. From simple designs to creative decorations, frosted cookies are a fun way to combine baking and art.
Fun Facts:
Frosting is also called icing and can be spread, piped, or drizzled onto cookies.
Sugar cookies are one of the most common types used for decorating.
Sprinkles, candies, and food coloring are often used to add extra detail.
Frosted Animal Cookie Flip: Download this free, open-ended card flipping game created by me, Speech Hamster!
50 Trials Articulation Activity: Grab Elite Tot Shop's free, cookie themed Open Ended Articulation Worksheets on Teachers Pay Teachers.
Cookie Pattern Builder: Create patterns using the images from the free download above. Students continue or describe the pattern as they complete speech/language tasks.
Create Your Own Cookie Cards: Browse these free cookie clip art resources on TpT. There are so many to choose from.
Cake vs Cookie: Grab Nat's Classroom's free Cake and Cookie Speech Therapy Activity, an articulation resource (TpT) for /k/ initial word position.
Following Directions: Browse these paid, printable cookie themed following directions activities ($) in my Teachers Pay Teachers store.
Wooden Frosted Cookies ($): Add this Wooden Cookie Play Set to your toolbox. A fun, hands-on way add an open ended activity to many speech/language goals.
Popular Children's Books:
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie – Written by Laura Numeroff and illustrated by Felicia Bond: A curious mouse asks for a cookie, leading to a chain of humorous events. 📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud] 🛒 [Free Resources on TpT]
Mr. Cookie Baker – Written by Monica Wellington, illustrated by Monica Wellington: Follow a baker through the steps of making cookies from start to finish. The simple text and clear sequence make it great for understanding routines.📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud]
Who Put the Cookies in the Cookie Jar? – Written by George Shannon, illustrated by Julie Paschkis: A rhythmic story that highlights the people behind the scenes of everyday items—including those delicious cookies. 📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud]
June 11
✨ National Making Life Beautiful Day (June 11)
About: National Making Life Beautiful Day encourages people to find simple ways to make the world a little brighter. Whether it’s helping someone, creating something, or sharing kindness, small actions can make a big difference.
Fun Facts:
The day was inspired by the idea that kindness and creativity can improve everyday life.
Doing something nice for others can boost your own mood too.
Acts of kindness can be as small as a smile or a kind word.
People celebrate by helping others, creating art, or spreading positivity.
What Makes Life Beautiful? Share & Build Activity: Provide each student with a paper shape (heart, star, or speech bubble) to draw or write one thing that makes life beautiful, like friends or sunshine. Students then share their idea in a complete sentence (“Life is beautiful when…”) and add it to a “Beautiful Life Board.”
Beautiful Things: Have students create a list (verbal or written) of things they think are beautiful. Have them compare and contrast their lists and discuss opinion vs. fact.
Beautiful Sort: Have students sort pictures of items that may be beautiful or ugly.
"Speech Sound" Vocabulary for Compliments: Have students brainstorm descriptive words beginning with their speech sound(s) that could be used within a compliment. Download my free Complimentary Words for Articulation.
Compliment Cards: Create cards with prompts to help students think of genuine compliments for their peers. Download my free Compliment Prompts created for World Compliment Day (Feb 1).
What Would You Do If…: Present scenarios like “What would you do if someone felt left out?” Students explain their responses.
What would you do if a new student joined your class?
What would you do if someone did something kind for you?
What would you do if you saw someone struggling to carry something heavy?
What would you do if you and a friend both wanted the same toy?
What would you do if you saw a piece of garbage on the playground?
Kindness Bingo: Engage students with a bingo game that encourages various kind acts. View these free resources on Teachers Pay Teachers.
Popular Children's Books:
Have You Filled a Bucket Today? – Written by Carol McCloud and illustrated by David Messing: A book that teaches the value of kindness through the metaphor of filling someone's invisible bucket with care and positivity. 📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud] 🛒 [Free Resources on TpT]
Be Kind – Written by Pat Zietlow Miller, illustrated by Jen Hill: A child wonders what it really means to be kind and how small actions can make a difference. The story encourages thoughtful reflection and everyday kindness.📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud] 🛒 [Free Resources on TpT]
The Invisible Boy – Written by Trudy Ludwig, illustrated by Patrice Barton: Brian feels invisible until a new student shows him kindness and includes him. This story highlights empathy, inclusion, and the power of small actions. 📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud] 🛒 [Free Resources on TpT]
Beautiful Oops – Written by Barney Saltzberg: A beautifully drawn, interactive book that shows how mistakes can turn into something creative and wonderful. 📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud] 🛒 [Free Resource on TpT]
👋 National Say “Hi” Day (June 11)
About: Say “Hi” Day is all about the simple act of greeting others. Saying hello can start conversations, build friendships, and help people feel included.
Fun Facts:
Greeting others is one of the first social skills children learn.
Different cultures have different ways of saying hello.
A friendly greeting can make someone feel noticed and valued.
Even a wave or smile can be a way to say “hi.”
How Do You Say Hi: Ask students to name different ways we can greet others. How many words/phrases can they come up with?
Say it Differently: Students pass an object around the circle. When they receive it, they say “hi” in a different way (happy, quiet, excited, silly).
H Words or 2 Letter Words: Make a list of other words that begin with "h" or other words that only have two letters.
Hi Bye Rhyming Words: name other words that rhyme with "hi" or "hello".
Guess What I'm Saying: Have students list or demonstrate ways we use our hands to send (appropriate) messages. Examples: wave hello/goodbye, come here, go over there, shoo, stop, wait, pointing, thumbs up/down, raising hand, shrug, clap, high five, fist bump, cross fingers, "be quiet".
Conversation Starters: After saying “hi,” students pick a prompt (e.g., “What did you do today?”) to practice continuing a conversation. Prompt cards could be:
General: What did you do this morning?, What do you like to do at school?, What are you going to do at recess today?
Favorites: What is your favorite game, snack, color, thing to do outside?
Getting to Know You: Do you have any pets? What do you like to do at home?, Who do you live with?, What do you like to do with your friends?
Popular Children's Books:
Hello, Hello! – Written and illustrated by Brendan Wenzel: This vibrant book introduces a variety of animals with unique features and greetings. The colorful illustrations celebrate diversity and noticing differences.📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud]
Say Hello! – Written and illustrated by Rachel Isadora: A young girl greets people from many different cultures in her neighborhood. The story introduces greetings from around the world in a simple and engaging way.[Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud]
Hello, Arnie – Written and illustrated by Laurie Keller: Arnie the Doughnut is excited to meet someone new – you - and spends the story trying to figure out who you are and what you like. With playful narration and interactive humor, this story invites young readers into a silly conversation with a donut who just wants to be friends. 📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud]
June 12
🦸 National Superman Day (June 12)
About: National Superman Day celebrates one of the most famous superheroes of all time. Known for his strength, kindness, and sense of justice, Superman inspires people to help others and do what’s right.
Fun Facts:
Superman first appeared in a comic book in 1938.
His symbol stands for hope and strength.
Superman has powers like flying, super strength, and heat vision.
His secret identity is Clark Kent, a newspaper reporter.
Superman is a trademarked character owned by DC Comics. To respect copyright and trademark guidelines, this activity focuses on the broader idea of superheroes – helping others, solving problems, and making good choices – rather than any specific character, images, or storylines.
Superhero Names: Have students create superhero (and/or sidekick) names for themselves. Download this free Superhero Name Generator open ended dice rolling game for speech therapy (dice not included).
CV Patterns: Use Speech Therapy Plans' free Apraxia Build a Superhero Game (TpT) when targeting CV, VC, CVC, CVCV and CVCVC patterns.
Comic Book Companion: Grab Ashley Egger's free Comic Book Companion activity for speech and language therapy (TpT). *check out her articulation comic books ($) while you're at it!
Building Words: How many words can your students create using the letters from SUPERMAN?
Free Boom Cards: Browse through these free superhero boom cards activities marked for speech therapy on Boom Learning.
More Free Resources on TpT: here are some freebies to consider -
Superhero Sentence Comprehension created by Speech Time Fun.
Superhero Spatial Concepts from Speech Language Lady
Superhero Listening for Language by K Ratliff
Speech Therapy Super Language (Mats) created by Shelley SLP
Superhero Sorting by Category from Violet Visuals
Roll a Story: Superhero Edition from Primarily Speaking by Aimee Salazar
and so much more!
If you want character specific ideas, search the name in TpT and select "free" as the price.
Popular Children's Books:
Even Superheroes Have Bad Days – Written by Shelly Becker and illustrated by Eda Kaban: This playful book shows how superheroes manage big feelings in healthy ways. It’s great for building emotional vocabulary and self-regulation strategies. 📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud] 🛒 [Free Resources on TpT]
10 Rules of Being a Superhero – Written by Deb Pilutti: A young boy explains the essential rules of being a great superhero—from always responding to a call for help to cleaning up messes. 📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud]
June 13
🌱 National Weed Your Garden Day (June 13)
About: National Weed Your Garden Day encourages people to take care of their gardens by removing weeds. It’s a great way to learn about plants and how to help them grow strong and healthy.
Fun Facts:
Weeds are plants that grow where they are not wanted.
Some weeds can take water and nutrients away from other plants.
Pulling weeds helps flowers and vegetables grow better.
Gardening can be a relaxing and enjoyable outdoor activity.
Pulling Weeds: Use this flower garden building set to create a garden then mix in a few “weeds” (pipe cleaners). Students practice speech/language targets after pulling each weed.
What Doesn’t Belong?: List groups of words (3 similar, 1 different). Students identify what doesn’t belong and explain why. Examples:
flower – carrot – tree – rock
rose – tulip – daisy – carrot
shovel – rake – hoe – grass
hose – watering can – sprinkler – gloves
wheelbarrow – soil – rake – flag
Step-by-Step Garden Sequencing: Sequence how to care for a garden: plant seeds, water, pull weeds, watch plants grow, etc.
Social Emotional Learning: Grab Helpful Healer's free Flower vs. Weed activity (TpT) for helping students understand helpful vs. hurtful thoughts.
Popular Children's Books:
Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt – Written by Kate Messner and illustrated by Christopher Silas Neal: Explore what happens above and below the soil in a garden throughout the seasons. It introduces plant growth, insects, and the life cycle of a garden. 📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud] 🛒 [Free Resource on TpT]
The Dandelion Seed – Written by Joseph Anthony and illustrated by Cris Arbo: A single dandelion seed floats through the world, teaching a lesson about adventure, resilience, and growth. 📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud]
June 14
🇺🇸 Flag Day (June 14)
About: Flag Day honors the adoption of the United States flag on June 14, 1777. The observance was officially established in 1916 by President Woodrow Wilson, though celebrations had been taking place even earlier.
Fun Facts:
The U.S. flag has 13 stripes to represent the original colonies.
There are 50 stars on the flag, one for each state.
The colors red, white, and blue each have symbolic meanings.
Flag Day became an official observance in 1916, established by Woodrow Wilson.
Flag Color Articulation Practice: Use red, white, and blue word cards. Students practice target sounds before placing them onto a flag template.
Craft Activity: Make a flag by tearing red, white, and blue paper into small pieces and gluing them onto a flag outline.
Describe the Flag or How to Draw the Flag: Have students describe the flag using attributes like colors, shapes, and patterns (stars, stripes, lines).
Same or Different? Compare Flags: Compare the U.S. flag to other flags (see The Flag Book below). Have students describe similarities and differences.
Popular Children's Books:
The Flag We Love – Written by Pam Muñoz Ryan and illustrated by Ralph Masiello: A simple introduction to the American flag and what it stands for.
📖 [Amazon Link] 🎥 [YouTube Read Aloud]
The Flag Book – Written by Moira Butterfield, illustrated by Tim Budgen: A nonfiction picture book explores flags from around the world, explaining their colors, symbols, and meanings. 📖 [Amazon Link]
More to Explore in Week 2
There’s more to explore with National Making Life Beautiful Day (June 11) and National Superman Day (June 12), which support perspective-taking and expressive language. You can also add creative and hands-on learning with National Ballpoint Pen Day (June 10), National Weed Your Garden Day (June 13), and Flag Day (June 14), keeping speech and language practice meaningful and connected to everyday experiences.
See More National Day Themes for June:
June National Days Week 1 (June 1 - 7)
June National Days Week 3 (June 15 - 21)
June National Days Week 4+ (June 22 - 31): coming soon
Quick Link to View All 12 Months: 10 Reasons to Use National Day Themes for Easy Speech Therapy Planning (each month's themes are noted at the end).
Hi! I'm Shannon, creator of Speech Hamster. If you have found the information in this blog post useful, there's more where that came from! Subscribe to the Speech Hamster Newsletter to gain access to the Free Resource Library; a hub containing a host of National Days downloadable resources and so much more!
Portions of this blog post were drafted with AI prompt assistance then reviewed and edited by me.
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