April 2012: Holidays, Observances and Ideas

April 2012 is:

• National Humor Month
• International Guitar Month
• Keep America Beautiful Month
• Lawn and Garden Month
• National Poetry Month
• National Pecan Month
• National Welding Month
• Records and Information Management Month
• Stress Awareness Month
• Sexual Assault Awareness Month

Weekly Celebrations:

• Week 1 Library Week
• Week 1 Read a Road Map Week.
• Week 2 Garden Week
• Week 3 Organize Your Files Week
• Week 3 Medical Labs Week
• Week 4 Administrative Assistants Week
• Week 4 National Karaoke Week

April 2012 Holidays:
(Click on the links to visit a website that has more information about the holidays including great recipe ideas, artwork and activity ideas.)


1 April Fool's Day
1 International Fun at Work Day
2 Children's Book Day
2 National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day
2 Reconciliation Day
3 Tweed Day
4 Hug a Newsman Day
4 Walk Around Things Day
4 School Librarian Day
4 Tell a Lie Day
5 Go for Broke Day  
6 National Walk to Work Day - first Friday of month
6 Sorry Charlie Day
7 Caramel Popcorn Day
7 No Housework Day
7 World Health Day
8 All is Ours Day
8 Draw a Picture of a Bird Day
8 Easter Date varies
9 Name Yourself Day
9 Winston Churchill Day
10 Golfer's Day 
10 National Siblings Day
11 Eight Track Tape Day
11 Barbershop Quartet Day
11 National Submarine Day
12 Big Wind Day
13 Scrabble Day
14 Ex Spouse Day
14 International Moment of Laughter Day
14 National Pecan Day
15 Rubber Eraser Day
15 Titanic Remembrance Day
16 National Eggs Benedict Day
16 National Librarian Day
16 National Stress Awareness Day
16 Patriot's Day - third Monday of the month
17 National Cheeseball Day     
17 Pet Owners Independence Day
18 International Juggler's Day
18 Newspaper Columnists Day
19 National Garlic Day
19 National High Five Day third Thursday
20 Look Alike Day
20 Volunteer Recognition Day
21 Kindergarten Day
22 Girl Scout Leader Day
22 National Jelly Bean Day
23 Lover's Day
23 National Zucchini Bread Day
23 Take a Chance Day
23 World Laboratory Day
24 Pig in a Blanket Day
25 World Penguin Day 
26 National Pretzel Day
26 Take Your Daughter to Work 4th Thursday
27 Babe Ruth Day
27 National Prime Rib Day
27 Tell a Story Day
28 Great Poetry Reading Day
29 Greenery Day
30 National Honesty Day     

Source: http://www.holidayinsights.com/moreholidays/april.htm

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Activity Idea: Turning Old Maps Into Placemats

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Activity Director Tips: How To Stay Organized

Organization is important to being successful at almost any job but it's especially important for activity directors. Proper planning ensures that you have enough supplies for residents to participate in activities and that the locations for your activities are available on the days and times you need them to be.  Small oversights can lead to major disasters, unhappy residents and displeased administration.  Use these three simple tools to keep yourself organized and avoid chaos:

1. Daily Planner or Electronic Calendar
   In order to plan effectively beyond the current month, you need a daily planner that you can use to book your upcoming entertainers and events.  If you don't like the idea of carrying around an actual daily planner then you can use an electronic calendar like the one in Outlook (or any other email client) or you can even use an online solution like Google Calendar (http://www.google.com/calendar) which is a free service.  Put everything from meeting times to scheduled activities and contact info in your planner or electronic calendar.  By using this resource religiously you'll never double-book yourself or forget about important events.
2. Copy of Your Current Monthly Activity CalendarMake sure to keep a copy of your current activity calendar with you so when someone needs to schedule to use your Activity Room at the last minute, you can easily refer to your current calendar and make changes. Make sure that you are consistent with updating all versions of the calendar; if you display the calendar in 2 or 3 places and you make a change then it needs to be changed everywhere to avoid confusion.
3. Activity NotebookThrow away your Post-It notes. They get lost, you'll overlook them and you don't need them anymore if you use a notebook to write everything down: notes, ideas, things your administrator wants to see in your activity calendars, etc. Utilizing just one place where you keep all of your notes reduces the risk of losing important information. It also keeps your desk neater because you don't need as many little pieces of paper with information on them floating all over your office.

(Source: http://www.notjustbingo.com)

Are you still creating activity calendars by hand?  Or do you use a service that requires you to manually recreate your calendar each month?  There is a better way!  MyCorwinCalendar saves you time and money by allowing you to create your calendar online and then edit it and reorder it each month.  We deliver high-quality professionally designed calendars to your facility's doorstep on-time each month.  Call us at 1-877-267-9462 or visit our website for more information about what we can do for you.

December Dates to Celebrate

December is Bingo Month
Bingo was first manufactured in 1929. Try playing different types of bingo this month.

December 17th: Ben and Jerrys first ice cream stand opened.
Have an ice cream party with different types of ice cream.

December 21st: The Birthday of The Crossword Puzzle
The first crossword puzzle was published on this date in 1913. Why don't you have a crossword puzzle party?  Give each resident a different puzzle to do for a set amount of time (5 minutes) then say, "switch" and have residents switch with other residents; keep going until the puzzles are done.  This activity is better suited for alert residents.

December 25th: Christmas
Why don't you have a Christmas Luncheon, with entertainment?  Or have the staff sing karaoke Christmas carols with your residents. Play games and have a present exchange with your residents.

December 31st: New Years Eve
Have a party at 12:00 noon, since everyone will be sleeping at midnight. Serve sparkling apple cider and have residents talk about their New Years resolutions.


Source: http://www.theactivitydirectorsoffice.com/Gina_ActivityIdeasThatWork_December.html

 

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Turkey on a Hat Activity!

With just a few simple items you can create this fun and friendly turkey on a hat for Thanksgiving.

You will need:

• Felt (Orange, red, yellow, white and brown)
• Large goggle eyes
• Tan paper twist
• Large straw hat
• Gold glitter paint
• A small piece of wire
• Pattern click here

Instructions:

Print out your pattern and cut it out. Trace the pattern onto desired colors of felt, or follow the example in the picture and cut out the felt pieces.

Glue the turkeys face onto the hat first so you know where the center is. Then glue the felt feathers on the top of the hat slightly overlaping. Glue the brown bib felt piece over the top of the feathers right around the hat ball part. And lastly, glue the two brown looking hands on each side of the bib shape.

Make a bow out of the paper twist and fluff up. Glue the yellow legs to the back of the hat.

Finishing touches: Using the Gold glitter and glue, add some swirls and dots on the bow and straight lines on the feather. I didn't put any more lines on the felt feathers. I didn't want it to look like leaves.

Last, secure a small piece of wire to the top back of the hat so you can hang it on the door.

Source: http://www.theactivitydirectorsoffice.com/Gina_ActivityIdeasThatWork_November.html

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October Is National Popcorn Poppin' Month

Here are some ideas for celebrating National Popcorn Poppin' Month with your residents! 

Decorating for a Popcorn Party                

Use a color scheme of yellow and white with a bit of red. Try yellow and red balloons, white and red streamers, dangle yellow and red curling ribbons from several places around the room. Use red and white striped aprons, tablecloths, napkins, etc., if you can find them. String up popcorn and wrap it along railing, across curtains, from hanging lights, etc. Rent a popcorn popper – this will be the hit of the party. You can find them at most party supply stores.

Guess the Kernels
Guess how many popcorn are in the jar. You may use popped corn or popcorn kernels. Just count the corn as you put it in the jar so you will know the correct answer. The resident who guesses closest to the correct answer wins the jar. This is a great opening activity for your popcorn party.

Popcorn and Movie Party
Nothing is more natural with popcorn than a movie. So, watch a movie with your residents while eating popcorn. 

Popcorn Toss
Toss popcorn onto a target. Lay the target down on a table and have residents flick popcorn onto the target using their index finger and thumb. Score their points to determine who wins.

Popcorn Surprise 

Prepare several different flavors of popcorn. Blindfold the residents and feed them the popcorn and have them guess the flavor.

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October Is Almost Here

General Information About October 

October is the tenth month of the year.  The first frost usually happens in October in the North Temperate Zone. Leaves change to their brilliant colors, and begin to fall, making the ground a beautiful haven of color.  Most birds have left for the south by the first frost.  Farmers bring in the last of the fall crops and either store or ship them to other parts of the world. In some parts, apples and grapes are still on the trees and vines. Many apples are harvested at the end of October.  Football usually dominates the scene in October. Hockey also begins it's season in October. And, the World Series will steal some of the spotlight from other sports.  The opal and the tourmaline are the birthstones for October. The calendula is the flower for the month of October.

Holidays In October

Columbus Day : The second Monday in October
Thanksgiving Day (Canadian) : The second Monday in October
Halloween : The last night of October


October Is...

Class Reunion Month
Frugal Fun Month
National Crime Prevention Month
Family Health Month
National Breast Cancer Awareness Month
National Positive Attitude Month
National Cookie Month
National Seafood Month
National Dessert & Cookie Month
National Popcorn & Popcorn Poppin’ Month
National Pretzel Month
National Pork Month
National Stamp Collecting Month
National Chili Month

We design and print activity calendars and newsletters!  1-877-CORWIN2
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