April Holidays & Quirky Celebrations (2024)
Fourth in my monthly series on celebration-worthy moments, below you’ll find a lengthy list of April Holidays and Quirky Celebrations. I hope these posts will help you make every month more memorable this year.
You’ll notice that some items on this list are linked to other pages. Click through for ideas and resources to help your family get the most out of each occasion.
April Holidays and Quirky Celebrations
April 1
- Sweet Potato Day (first Monday in April)
- National Fun Day (first Monday in April) – For fifty frugal ideas for family fun, download our free printable bucket list.
- April Fool’s Day
- National Atheist Day – It’s fitting this one should fall on April Fool’s Day, since the Bible says, “The fool has said in his heart, ‘There is no God.'” (Psalms 14:1). I’m pretty sure they did that on purpose.
- National One-Cent Day
- National Burrito Day
- National Jump in Muddy Puddles Day – Pull on a pair of galoshes and have at it!
- International Fun at Work Day
- National Trombone Players Day
- National Sourdough Bread Day
- International Tatting Day
- Poetry and the Creative Mind Day – Celebrate by reading a few favorite poems.
April 2
- International Children’s Book Day – Here are a few of our favorite Children’s Books — all on the theme of spring!
- Reconciliation Day
- National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day – Make up a batch of PB&J for lunch. And remind your kids: Don’t waste the crust!
April 3
- Global Day of the Engineer (the first Wednesday in April)
- National DIY Day
- National Find a Rainbow Day
- American Circus Day – This is the anniversary of first circus performance in America, which took place in Philadelphia in 1793.
- Pony Express Day – Read a book on the Pony Express.
- Tweed Day
- World Party Day
- Don’t Go to Work Unless it’s Fun Day – Or…how about making work as fun as you can and doing it heartily “as unto the Lord,” whether you particularly enjoy it or not?
April 4
- Hug a Newsman Day
- Walk Around Things Day
- Vitamin C Day
- International Carrot Day
April 5
- National Walk to Work Day (first Friday of April)
- National Deep Dish Pizza Day
- Bell Bottoms Day – Hard to believe these are coming back in style again!
- National Caramel Day
- Read a Road Map Day
- Go for Broke Day
- National Dandelion Day – If you can find a few wild ones, you can make a dandalion salad or weave a crown for your hair.
April 6
- International Pillow Fight Day (first Saturday in April) – If you have a pillow fight at home, make sure heads are off-limits!
- Caramel Popcorn Day
- Fresh Tomato Day
- Jump Over Things Day
- National Student Athlete Day
- World Table Tennis Day – Ping-Pong, anyone? No table? No worries! This retractable table tennis net lets you play almost anywhere.
- National Tartan Day
- Plan Your Epitaph Day
- Sorry Charlie Day – How about eating some tunafish salad for lunch?
- Army Day – Teach your kids the words to the Army Anthem or read them the poem, The Boy Enlists.
April 7
- Geologists Day (first Sunday in April)
- National Beaver Day
- National Coffee Cake Day – For a super quick and easy coffee cake recipe, make these sticky buns in a bundt pan.
- World Health Day
- Whole Grain Sampling Day
- Metric System Day
- No Housework Day – If you’ll teach your children housekeeping chores, you’ll eventually work yourself out of a job. Until then, housekeeping matters. So attend to it faithfully, even if you do opt to take a break now and then.
April 8
- All is Ours Day – This is “a day to embrace all the wonderful things in life and enjoy the beauty of nature.” Maybe a better name would’ve been “Count Your Blessings Day.”
- National Take Your Parents to the Playground Day
- National Empanada Day
- Step into the Spotlight Day
- Zoo Lover’s Day
- Draw a Picture of a Bird Day – Check out this free printable tutorial for drawing a variety of bird species.
April 9
- Name Yourself Day
- National Unicorn Day
- National Chicken Little Awareness Day
- Appomattox Day
- National Cherish an Antique Day – A fun day to go “antiquing.”
- Winston Churchill Day – The British Bulldog had a way with words. Here are a few of my favorite Churchill quotes, as applied to marriage.
April 10
- School Librarians’ Day (on Wednesday of second full week in April)
- Golfer’s Day
- National Siblings Day – For ideas on cultivating friendship among siblings, check out this post.
- Global Work from Home Day
- National Farm Animals Day
- Safety Pin Day
- National Hug Your Dog Day
- National Cinnamon Crescent Day
- Encourage a Young Writer Day – Try one of my devotional journals to encourage your children to write more. Beautiful vintage artwork, relevant Scripture verses, and thoughtful writing prompts on every page.
April 11
- Eight Track Tape Day
- Holocaust Remembrance Day
- National Pet Day – Celebrate this April holiday with our Prov. 12:10 coloring page: “The righteous care for the needs of their animals.” Or use this handy chart to help care for the needs of yours.
- National Cheese Fondue Day
- Good Deeds Day – Kindness starts at home. Use this free printable to help your kids brainstorm good deeds they can do for family members.
- National Submarine Day
- Barbershop Quartet Day – I love the tight, four-part harmony showcased by Barbershop Quartets. Don’t you?
April 12
- Big Wind Day – Sounds like another great day for flying a kite!
- Russian Cosmonaut Day
- National Licorice Day
- Wear a Star Day – The stars symbolize “little stars in heaven” and are meant to give hope to parents who have lost children at a young age, including through stillbirth or miscarriage.
- National Grilled Cheese Sandwich Day – Grilled cheese pairs beautifully with Softa’s scrumptious tomato basil soup
- Walk on Your Wild Side Day
- Drop Everything and Read Day – We have lots of great resources for book lovers, including this fun reading challenge for folks who want to drop everything and read every day:
April 13
- International Be Kind to Lawyers Day
- Scrabble Day – An opportune time to play one of my all-time favorite games.
- National Peach Cobbler Day – You could make traditional cobbler, or use peaches in our Fresh Fruit Crumble recipe.
- National Make Lunch Count Day
- Thomas Jefferson Day – Celebrate the birthday of our 3rd President by coloring this great Jefferson quote.
April 14
- Ex-Spouse Day
- International Moment of Laughter Day
- Look up at the Sky Day
- National Pecan Day – Kick this April holiday off right by baking a batch of these pecan pie muffins for breakfast!
- Reach as High as You Can Day
- National Dolphin Day – If you get the chance to see some dolphins up close and personal, this April holiday would be a great time to take it.
April 15
- Patriots’ Day (third Monday in April) – Consider yourself a patriot? I wrote this journal especially for you!
- Boston Marathon Day (third Monday in April)
- Take a Wild Guess Day
- World Art Day
- National Laundry Day – Click here for a free printable stain removal guide.
- Celebrate Teen Literature Day
- Rubber Eraser Day
- Tax Day
- Titanic Remembrance Day
- ASL Day
- Jackie Robinson Day
- McDonald’s Day
- Micro-volunteering Day – For a treasure-trove of volunteering ideas, check out this post.
April 16
- National Library Workers Day (observed on Tuesday of second full week in April)
- National Eggs Benedict Day
- Four Square Day – This April holiday is all about the app, not the game, but I think a 4-Square tournament sounds like a fun way to celebrate the occasion, anyway.
- Save the Elephant Day
- National Librarian Day
- National Wear Your Pajamas to Work Day – Admittedly a little easier to pull off for folks who work (or school ?) at home!
- World Semicolon Day – The majority of people seldom use semicolons; therefore, this holiday seems the perfect time to review this punctuation mark’s proper placement.
- Day of the Mushroom
- National Stress Awareness Day – For some practical tips on going from stressed to blessed, check out this post.
April 17
- National Banana Day (third Wednesday in April) – Celebrate with banana bread, banana pudding, or banana splits!
- National Cheeseball Day
- International Haiku Day – Teach your kids this 5-7-5 pattern and challenge them to write a haiku or two for the occasion.
- Nothing Like a Dame Day
- National Kickball Day
- Bat Appreciation Day
April 18
- National High Five Day (third Thursday in April)
- National Ask an Atheist Day (third Thursday) – I’m all for striking up conversations with atheists, and asking questions is a great way to do so. But I recommend you make sure you are well-grounded in your faith before doing too much of this.
- National Animal Crackers Day
- International Amateur Radio Day
- National Lineman Appreciation Day
- National Velociraptor Awareness Day – Sounds like a good day to watch Jurassic Park!
- Piñata Day
- Pet Owners Independence Day
- National Harmonica Day – It’s easy to learn how to play a harmonica. Check out this post for directions, plus the harmonica music for several free printable hymns.
- National Newspaper Columnists’ Day
- International Juggler’s Day – Whether you’re juggling balls or scarves or household chores or children’s school and extra curricular schedules, this day is for you! (And so are these tips on multitasking in ways that make good sense.)
View this post on Instagram
April 19
- National Hanging Out Day – This is not a day for lounging around with your buddies, but for drying your clothes out in the fresh air and sunshine.
- Humorous Day
- National Garlic Day – My new favorite way to eat garlic? Roasted!
- Bicycle Day – Hop on and take a ride around the block! Then come back home and color this free printable.
April 20
- Husband Appreciation Day (third Saturday in April) – Husband’s need all the appreciation they can get, so ditch any notions of entitlement and cultivate an attitude of gratitude instead.
- World Circus Day (third Saturday in April)
- Chinese Language Day
- Lima Bean Respect Day
- Pineapple Upside Down Cake Day
- Volunteer Recognition Day
- National Look Alike Day – Our family has several celebrity look-alikes. Don’t you think these could qualify as doppelgängers?
April 21
- Go Fly a Kite Day (third Sunday in April) – “Let’s go fly a kite, up to the highest height…”
- Kindergarten Day – I share my kindergarten recommendations here.
- Big Word Day
- National Chocolate Covered Cashews Day – I’m in favor of celebrating chocolate covered anything!
- San Jacinto Day – Hooray for Texas Independence!
- Thank You for Libraries Day
- World Creativity and Innovation Day – For some innovative ideas for celebrating this holiday, take a look at these creative ways to use paper bags, cans, and toilet paper rolls.
- Bulldogs are Beautiful Day
- Keep Off the Grass Day
- National Administrative Professionals Day – Better known as Secretaries Day!
- British National Tea Day – Celebrate by taking our Tea Time Trivia Test.
April 22
- Love Your Thighs Day – For me, there’s a lot there to love… especially after birthing 12 babies!
- National Teach Children to Save Day – Download free saving tips and financial charts for kids here.
- In God We Trust Day – Celebrate by coloring this In God We Trust coloring page
- April Showers Day
- Girl Scout Leader Day
- Earth Day
- National Jelly Bean Day – Print up a few copies of this jelly bean gospel to share with friends, a long with a bagful of beans.
April 23
- School Bus Driver’s Day (fourth Tuesday in April) – How about singing a rousing round of “The Wheels on the Bus” today?
- Take Your Kids to Work Day (fourth Thursday in April)
- Lover’s Day – This one happens to coincide with the day I met my husband. How perfect is that?
- World Laboratory Day
- Spanish Language Day – Follow this link for our Spanish language resources.
- English Language Day – I guess English couldn’t let Spanish steal all the attention. Ha! So we’ll just celebrate both languages today.
- National Picnic Day
- National Lost Dog Awareness Day
- International Nose Picking Day – If all nose-picking could be relegated to a 24 hours per year, I’d be all for this holiday. But if it only reinforces a bad habit, I’d rather skip the “celebration” altogether!
- Take a Chance Day
- World Book Day – Need help fostering a love for books in the hearts of your kids? Try these 25 Ways to Cultivate Literacy.
April 24
- Denim Day (last Wednesday in April) – I remember when denim jumpers were the unofficial uniform of homeschoolers everywhere!
- Stop Food Waste Day (last Wednesday in April) – Time to clean out the fridge and eat up all those leftovers!
- New Kids on the Block Day
- Pig in a Blanket Day
April 25
- Thank You Thursday (last Thursday in April) – For help on writing personal notes of gratitude, check out my step-by-step guide: How to Write a Thank You Note
- East meets West Day
- National DNA Day – Get yours mapped today with 23andMe.
- World Penguin Day
- Hairstylist Appreciation Day
- National Crayola Day – Use them to color some of our free Christian coloring pages.
- Hug a Plumber Day
- National Mani-Pedi Day
- International Financial Independence Awareness Day – Point your children in the direction of financial independence with these free printable charts for young entrepreneurs
- Red Hat Society Day
- National Zucchini Bread Day
- National Telephone Day – Complete this list of important numbers and you’ll be prepared when speed dial fails or your cell phone runs out of juice.
April 26
- Arbor Day (last Friday of April) – How about celebrating by planting (or transplanting) a tree?
- National Pretzel Day
- Alien Day – You can celebrate this holiday by watching an movie about extra-terrestrials. Our favorite? Signs
- Hug a Friend Day
- Hug an Australian Day
- World Intellectual Property Day
- Richter Scale Day
- Get Organized Day
- National Static Cling Day
- Audubon Day – Today would be a great day to download our Audubon State Bird coloring pages!
April 27
- National Day of Puppetry (fourth Saturday in April)
- Eeyore’s Birthday (last Saturday in April)
- Independent Bookstore Day (last Saturday in April)
- National Go Birding Day (last Saturday in April) – For a list of suggested birdwatching supplies, scroll to the bottom of this post.
- National Prescription Drug Take Back Day (last Saturday in April)
- Save the Frogs Day (last Saturday in April) – For some fun free frog-themed printables, hop on over to this post. You might also enjoy these froggy books or frog-themed snacks.
- National Rebuilding Day (last Saturday in April)
- National Sense of Smell Day (last Saturday in April) – Lots of people are missing this in post-COVID society. So if you’ve still got your sense of smell, don’t take it for granted.
- National Prime Rib Day
- Babe Ruth Day
- Morse Code Day – Teach your kids how to signal SOS (dot dot dot – dash dash dash – dot dot dot) on this April holiday?
- Marine Mammal Rescue Day
- National Tell a Story Day
April 28
- International Pay It Forward Day
- Superhero Day – Celebrate this April holiday by donning a cape or mask, or discussing what super power you would choose if you could take your pick.View this post on Instagram
- National Blueberry Pie Day
- Clean Comedy Day
- World Day for Safety and Health at Work
- International Astronomy Day – Weather permitting, throw down a blanket and go stargazing tonight! And color our Heavens Declare the Glory of God printable while waiting for them to come out.
- Great Poetry Reading Day – My go-to book of poetry? Favorite Poems Old and New
- Kiss Your Mate Day – Knock out three April holidays at once: Kiss your mate, then read some poetry together under the stars!!
April 29
- International Dance Day – Put on some upbeat music and dance around with your kids or look up some instructional videos on YouTube to get the moves down right.
- Poem in Your Pocket Day
- World Wish Day
- Zipper Day
- National Shrimp Scampi Day
- Viral Video Day – A great day for viewing something viral or trying to film your own. Here are our past attempts: Flanders Family Videos. The closest to “viral” we’ve ever come is with footage of the two baby squirrels we raised to adulthood:
April 30
- Hairstyle Appreciation Day – If you’ll learn to cut hair at home, you can do all the hairstyling yourself.
- National Oatmeal Cookie Day
- Bugs Bunny Day – I grew up watching Bugs Bunny bright and early every Saturday morning, but many kids today wouldn’t recognize Bugs if they saw him on the street. Good thing you can stream the original theatrical cartoons for FREE with your Amazon Prime membership.
- National Mr. Potato Head Day
- Adopt a Shelter Pet Day
- National Military Brats Day – In that their fathers were full-time military men, my husband was such a “brat,” and so are a couple of my grandkids. Today’s the day to celebrate that fact!
- International Jazz Day
- National Honesty Day – These four principles will help you teach your children to tell the truth.
Week-long Celebrations in the Month of April
First Week of April
- National Robotics Week
- National Library Week – Visit your public library and check out a few new books.
- Be Kind to Spiders Week
- Read a Road Map Week
- National Bake Week – This would be an opportune time for baking some blueberry muffins, banana nut bread, or fresh fruit crumble.
Second Week of April
- Garden Week – The perfect time for planning or planting a garden — or at least coloring a picture about it.
Third Week of April
- Organize Your Files Week – I’m determined to get mine in order this month!
- National Pet ID Week
- Medical Labs Week
- Week of the Young Child – Young children are capable of much more than our current culture gives them credit for. For a glimpse at what they can do, check out our free Age-Appropriate Chore Chart and our printable on Encouraging Creativity in Children
Fourth Week of April
- Go Diaper Free Week (week following last Sunday in April)
- Administrative Assistants Week
- National Karaoke Week
- World Immunization Week
Special observances that last the entire month of April
- Keep America Beautiful Month
- National Humor Month
- Mathematics Education Month – Download our math drills and number writing practice sheets for help!
- Jazz Appreciation Month
- National Card and Letter Writing Month
- National Welding Month
- International Guitar Month
- National Poetry Month – Get a good book of poetry and read a few selections each day. Or commit a poem or two to memory. You’ll find a couple of our favorites here: Teaching Poetry to Children
- National Pecan Month – Celebrate by baking a batch of our scrumptious Pecan Pie Muffins!
- Lawn and Garden Month
- National Frog Month – You’ll find frog-themed printables, frog-themed books and songs, and frog-themed snacks, all on our website.
- Records and Information Management Month
- Alcohol Awareness Month
- Worldwide Bereaved Spouses Awareness Month
- Stress Awareness Month
- Children and Nature Awareness Month – If you’d like to encourage a love for the great outdoors through nature journaling, check out All Things Bright and Beautiful, my devotional journal for nature lovers.
And that wraps us our April Holidays post. For more posts in this series, please follow this link: Monthly Holidays & Quirky Celebrations