Make planning for the summer months in your classroom easier with these July holiday activities and ideas.
Just because school is out here in the US during the month of July doesn’t mean the learning has to stop. In fact, you may find yourself still teaching in July.
Maybe you are in year-round school, or your school is testing out an alternative schedule, or you’re teaching summer school, or maybe you are a homeschooling parent… no matter the reason, we want to make sure that you have some great July holiday activities and ideas to use with your students.
Let’s start with some July holidays that we celebrate in the US.
July Holidays Activities and Ideas
When you begin to set up your lessons and units for July, consider aligning some of your projects with the holidays that take place in July. We are offering up a few ideas for some of the holidays in July that could be extra fun to celebrate with students.
Independence Day (July 4th)
On or around the Fourth of July, celebrate with students by reviewing the history of the Fourth of July, the American Flag, and maybe even learning how fireworks work.
Watch a video of a big fireworks show, and then maybe try a few Fourth of July experiments like the ones shown in this video.
World Chocolate Day (July 7th)
On World Chocolate Day, bring out different chocolates made in different parts of the world and discuss some of the special flavors or ingredients that are specific to different regions. When you’re done, do a little taste-testing party, or melt some chocolate and let students add in some ‘secret’ ingredients of their own.
Don’t Step on a Bee Day (July 10th)
Bees are an integral part of many different ecosystems, and what greater day to talk about them than Don’t Step on a Bee Day?
On this day, cut out a bunch of large bee pictures, and put facts or questions about bees on the back.
Then set up the bees like a life-size gameboard for students to travel through and learn about bees and what they do for the environment.
Shark Awareness Day (July 14th)
Depending on where you live, your students may or may not be familiar with sharks, so Shark Awareness Day may mean different things to different people depending on whether or not you live near water.
No matter where you live, you can learn about different kinds of sharks – where they live and what they eat. One fun way to show students where sharks live is to print out pictures of different kinds of sharks and map them out on a world map—putting the images where the sharks are likely to be found.
World Emoji Day (July 17th)
Celebrate World Emoji Day with these Emoji-Themed Close Reads! Students will learn a little more about the cultural significance of emojis along with some other interesting details as they read about “A Cultural Mix-Up,” a fiction passage about pen pals who have a misunderstanding about an emoji meaning, “Hieroglyphics vs. Emojis” an informational passage about the similarities and differences between hieroglyphics and emojis, and “The History of Emojis” an informational passage about the history of emojis. You can pick just one of the passages from the Emoji Close Reads to work on with students on World Emoji Day, or you can do them all!
Sprinkle Day (July 23rd)
Just like World Emoji Day, we’ve also got a fun set of close reads for Sprinkle Day. These Sweet Treats Close Reads include a fictional passage about a girl entering a baking competition, a nonfiction passage about the history of ice cream, and an informational passage about different donut treats from around the world.
World Snorkeling Day (July 30th)
Sometimes picking the best July holiday activities and ideas to use with your students, you have to get a little creative and maybe even a little messy. And on World Snorkeling Day, I’m suggesting exactly that.
Go diving with students on World Snorkeling Day, no matter where you live. Set up a baby pool full of sand and different objects, and then get some cheap snorkeling masks that students can use as they explore the bottom of the pool, looking for treasures.
Watch videos from different snorkeling adventures worldwide and discuss how snorkeling has changed how humans can interact with and see the world.
Harry Potter’s Birthday (July 31st)
On Harry Potter’s birthday, it may be a perfect time to learn about the ‘Wonderful World of Harry Potter.’ Depending on the age of your students, you could read a bit of one of the books or kick off a read-aloud of the books in class if your school will allow it.
If you don’t want to read the books, you can also do activities where you talk about the qualities of the different wizard houses and let students sort themselves into them, or you could let students do creative writing about a magical talent they wished they possessed.
July ELA Activities
In addition to the activities that you can use for each holiday, you can also fill in some of your instruction with some July-themed writing and reading.
These July Holiday of the Day Writing Prompts include a writing prompt for each day of the month, most of which are aligned with some of the less common holidays celebrated in July, including National Waterpark Day and the International Day of Listening… among so many others.
These July-Themed Close Reads are also a nice addition to your July daily lessons. With topics like sharks and the American Flag, you can tie them into some of the holidays you’re celebrating, or you can pick any day to work through them. As with all of the other Close Reads offered in the Fun in 5th Grade store, these July close reads all include some mystery pictures for a little extra reading comprehension practice and creative time.
For even more monthly ideas, check out the full-year list of monthly blog posts below!
- January Holiday Activities and Ideas
- February Holiday Activities and Ideas
- March Holiday Activities and Ideas (Coming Soon)
- April Holiday Activities and Idea
- May Holiday Activities and Ideas
- June Holiday Activities and Ideas
- July Holiday Activities and Ideas
- August Holiday Activities and Ideas
- September Holiday Activities and Ideas
- October Holiday Activities and Ideas
- November Holiday Activities and Ideas
- December Holiday Activities and Ideas
