Months and CalendarsActivities & Teaching Strategies
Active, hands-on learning helps young students grasp abstract time concepts by connecting them to their daily lives. Moving, touching, and discussing calendars and months builds muscle memory for sequencing and reinforces ordinal language through real examples like birthdays.
Learning Objectives
- 1Identify the 12 months of the year in their correct sequence.
- 2Locate specific dates, such as birthdays, on a given calendar.
- 3Count the number of months in a year.
- 4Determine the month that follows a given month.
- 5Classify months based on seasonal characteristics relevant to Australia.
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Calendar Walk: Month Sequencing
Print month cards and place them around the room in random order. Students walk the room, collect cards, and sequence them on a large floor calendar. Discuss as a class why January comes first and count total months together.
Prepare & details
Can you find your birthday month on the calendar?
Facilitation Tip: During Calendar Walk, position yourself at the front with a large calendar so students can see the clear, correct order as they move into place.
Setup: Groups at tables with access to source materials
Materials: Source material collection, Inquiry cycle worksheet, Question generation protocol, Findings presentation template
Birthday Hunt: Personal Calendars
Provide blank calendars for each student. Have them draw and label their birthday month, then share with a partner. Class compiles a birthday chart, counting how many in each month.
Prepare & details
How many months are in a year — can you count them?
Facilitation Tip: For Birthday Hunt, provide each student with a blank month strip to personalize and keep, so they connect physical creation with memory of their own date.
Setup: Groups at tables with access to source materials
Materials: Source material collection, Inquiry cycle worksheet, Question generation protocol, Findings presentation template
Month Chain: Paper Links
Students cut and decorate paper strips for each month, writing the name. Link them into a chain in order, reciting as they add each link. Hang chains to track upcoming events like holidays.
Prepare & details
What month comes after June?
Facilitation Tip: In Month Chain, demonstrate how to link paper loops by matching month order before handing out materials, ensuring students understand the task structure.
Setup: Groups at tables with access to source materials
Materials: Source material collection, Inquiry cycle worksheet, Question generation protocol, Findings presentation template
Song and Clap: Months Rhythm
Teach a months-of-the-year song with claps for each. Students stand in a circle, passing a ball while naming the next month. Record and replay for repetition.
Prepare & details
Can you find your birthday month on the calendar?
Facilitation Tip: Guide Song and Clap by clapping slowly at first, emphasizing the rhythm of each month’s name to support auditory and kinesthetic learners.
Setup: Groups at tables with access to source materials
Materials: Source material collection, Inquiry cycle worksheet, Question generation protocol, Findings presentation template
Teaching This Topic
Teach months as a cycle rather than isolated words. Use visual and tactile materials to show the 12-month loop, as research shows students remember sequences better when they physically manipulate or move through them. Avoid teaching months in isolation or out of order, as this can reinforce misconceptions about month length or repetition. Encourage students to relate months to their own lives through birthdays or special events, making the abstract concrete.
What to Expect
By the end of these activities, students will confidently name and sequence the 12 months, identify key dates on a calendar, and explain how months repeat each year. Look for accurate counting, correct ordinal language, and engagement with both individual and group tasks.
These activities are a starting point. A full mission is the experience.
- Complete facilitation script with teacher dialogue
- Printable student materials, ready for class
- Differentiation strategies for every learner
Watch Out for These Misconceptions
Common MisconceptionDuring Calendar Walk, watch for students assuming all months have the same number of days.
What to Teach Instead
Use the large calendar to point out February as shorter and count the days in each month together. Ask students to compare lengths and identify the 30-day months by circling them with a colored marker.
Common MisconceptionDuring Month Chain, watch for students thinking months repeat every week.
What to Teach Instead
Have students lay their paper chains flat and count the total loops. Ask, ‘How many months are there?’ and ‘Do they repeat next week?’ to reinforce the full 12-month cycle.
Common MisconceptionDuring Birthday Hunt, watch for students believing the order of months changes each year.
What to Teach Instead
After students arrange their month strips, ask them to swap with a partner and check if the order is the same. Point to January and December on the wall calendar to show the permanent loop.
Assessment Ideas
After Calendar Walk, give each student a card with a month name. Ask them to write the next month and draw an event that happens in that month, using the calendar as a reference.
During Birthday Hunt, ask students to point to their birthday month on their personalized month strip. Then, ask them to count aloud how many months are between their birthday and December.
After Song and Clap, ask, ‘If today is June, what month will it be next?’ and ‘How many months until Christmas?’ Encourage students to use their Month Chain or calendar to explain their answers.
Extensions & Scaffolding
- Challenge students to create a class timeline with events from each month using pictures and labels.
- For students who struggle, provide a month wheel with movable pieces so they can practice sequencing hands-on before writing.
- Deeper exploration: Introduce moon phases or seasonal changes alongside months to connect time with natural cycles.
Key Vocabulary
| Calendar | A chart or system that shows the days, weeks, and months of a particular year. |
| Month | One of the twelve divisions of a year, such as January, February, etc. |
| Sequence | The order in which things happen or are arranged. |
| Birthday | The anniversary of the day on which a person was born. |
Suggested Methodologies
Planning templates for Mathematics
5E Model
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Unit PlannerMath Unit
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RubricMath Rubric
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