Mark Your Calendar: The Month of May

Did you know that the month of May also has some interesting dates worthy of marking on your calendar? The Old Farmer’s Almanac for Kids shares some fun facts about things for kids to do in May.

Mark Your Calendar: The Month of May

May is National Bike Month
Research the rules of the road for cyclists. Then, set up an obstacle course for bicycles. (Be sure to wear your helmet and elbow and knee pads!) Place garbage cans, laundry baskets, lawn chairs, a wheelbarrow, and other obstacles on a playground or grassy field. Draw a map to show your friends the route they should ride around the obstacles. Compete to see who can ride the course without running into any obstacles. Use a stopwatch to measure the fastest time.

May 12: Limerick Day
This day is the birthday of Edward Lear, who published A Book of Nonsense in 1846. With it, Lear popularized the limerick, a five-line poem with a specific rhyme scheme. Here’s an example:
There once was an ape in a zoo
Who often asked “How do you do?”
Of surprised passersby
Until one made reply:
“I’m fine, sir—how is it with you?”

May 25: National Tap Dance Day
Celebrate tap dancing as an art form on the anniversary of the birth of Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, who famously danced with child actress Shirley Temple. In the 1935 film The Little Colonel, he teaches Shirley Temple’s character how to dance up the stairs. Find videos of the national anthem of tap—the “Shim Sham” (or “Shim Sham Shimmy”). Gather a few friends and learn the dance. You don’t need taps on your shoes to do it.