April brings Spring flowers and the start of lots of outdoor fun..    Read on to find out more about this month of special days and fun activities for families to do together.

There are inks to crafts and recipes you can create with your children this April! Bring out the inner chef and artist in your child.

4/1-7th- Week of the Young Child:  NAEYC first established the Week of the Young Child® in 1971, recognizing that the early childhood years (birth through age 8) lay the foundation for children’s success in school and later life. The Week of the Young Child® is a time to plan how we—as citizens of a community, of a state, and of a nation—will better meet the needs of all young children and their families.

Each day of the week we will honor our children with several fun activities:  Please see the flyer from the office for our FUN week!

4/1 “Find a penny, pick it up, all day long you have good luck!”. It is also known as National One Cent Day! The original penny was produced in 1787 and much larger than our current penny! 4/1 On National One Cent Day make your own Lucky Penny Spinner inexpensively with some card stock, a penny, markers, scissors, and tape!

4/1   April Fool’s Day is an annual custom on 1st of April consisting of practical jokes and hoaxes. Jokesters often expose their actions by shouting “April Fools!” at the recipient.  jokes

4/2 World Autism Awareness Day! Every April Autism Speaks celebrates World Autism Month, beginning with the United Nations-sanctioned World Autism Awareness Day on April 2. This year marks the 15th annual World Autism Awareness Day.  Check out autism speaks information!

4/2 National Love our Children Day! National Love Our Children Day began in America in 2004. Its aim is to honor and celebrate America’s children and stress the importance of love as they grow up. It also wants to promote the strengthening of families and raise awareness of the need to protect children from the harmful sides of society.“Spend the day with the children and teens in your life! Shower them with special attention. Take them to a movie, game, fair, concert, shopping or out to lunch.

4/3 Happy National Find a Rainbow Day! This unofficial holiday is full of hope and promise. A rainbows beauty can typically be observed after a rain shower, however, can be seen from light shining at the right angle.  Ever want to have your own rainbow? With a few supplies you likely have at home, you can create a rainbow of your very own on National Find a Rainbow Day! Enjoy some fun Rainbow Recipes!

 4/6 National PJ Day-Dress up in your favorite pajamas and celebrate National Pajama Day by posting photos of yourself wearing them. You can also invite friends and family to do the same.

4/7 If you know someone who has a special talent for making beautiful things? Take an extra minute to show appreciation for their talent on National Homemade Day! Simply tell them how much you appreciate their talents! Making something homemade adds an extra special touch to gifts. Ever think about making something homemade for our wild-life friends? On National Homemade Day, why not make a special homemade ornament feeder for our wildlife friends today?

4/9-Ever wonder why Easter falls on a different date every year? Officially, it falls on the first Sunday following the full moon after the vernal equinox. It is also Christianity’s most important holy day and Americans consume more than 16 million jellybeans during this holiday! Whether you celebrate Easter or not, these 19 fun facts about Easter are amusing! https://www.elitedaily.com/life/culture/facts-about-easter/986079  4/21 Looking for a cute Easter craft for your kids? Why not have them create these cute goldfish carrots for their classmates? https://www.cleanandscentsible.com/goldfish-carrots/

4/14 National Gardening Day: is a holiday in which people can roll up their sleeves and get their hands a little bit dirty in their garden. Gardening is a hobby enjoyed by millions of people all over the world and is probably one of the most relaxing of all the hobbies a person can do. That’s why everyone should try their hand at this activity at least once in their lifetime, and there’s no better day to start gardening than on this holiday.

Gardening with children provides them with skills to help your child’s development. You and your children will enjoy every stage of the process. Young children can practice locomotor skills, body management skills and object control skills in the garden.  Gardening Activities for Kids

4/5-4/13 Passover or Pesach is a holiday that falls around the same time as Easter. Passover is a time to remember when God had Moses free the Israelites from slavery. Special foods are eaten during this time including unleavened bread called matzo.  Looking to switch up a recipe for Passover? How about creating an Overnight Matzo Breakfast Bake for a satisfying Passover breakfast?Here are some other additional fun activities you can do at home with your children passover-activities

4/15 World Art Day-All around the world, people have their definitions for what they consider to be art. Different cultures have different tastes and styles. This holiday is used as an opportunity to promote the development of art.  There are so many fun activities to do with your children for World Art Day!

4/18 While the origin of the High-5 likely started in the 1970’s, the history of the National High Five seemingly grew out of kindness. Why not make someone smile by giving them a surprise greeting today!  A wonderful movement blanketing the country is where a student chooses how they want to be greeted. They can choose a hug, a fist bump or a High 5. Today, why not greet each other with a special High 5 you created yourself.

4/22 Earth Day Earth Day, which was established in 1970 in the US, is celebrated on 22nd April each year. It is a day to think about our planet and what we can do to keep it special; to think about saving water and energy, reducing pollution, recycling, protecting our animals, trees, and plants, and generally getting kids interested in protecting their environment.

4/26 National Pretzel Day Pretzels have been enjoyed since medieval times when monks created the treats from bits of dough that were twisted together to represent a child’s arms in prayer. The frugal monks called it a petiole, or Latin for “little reward.”  For National Pretzel Day would you prefer a salty or sweet pretzel? How about both??

4/28 National Superhero Day: Back in the year 1995, on December 28, Marvel employees created this day to celebrate everyone’s favorite superhero. Reportedly, the idea behind superhero day was to honor those who serve and protect people and the world as they fight the evil. National Superhero Facts

Please take pictures of your activities and share them with your classrooms! We would love to see what you create!!

Don’t forget to check out the Kangaroo Kids Website for information on events and community service projects!

http://www.njfamily.com/

https://mommypoppins.com/

Find a local NJ Easter Egg hunt on this website. Always call first to verify the event is taking place!

Easter Egg Hunts and Events 2022

Don’t forget to check out events at the local Library