How to Teach Days of the Week
Manic Mondays, TGIFridays, Superbowl Sundays…the days of the week are an integral part of our world.
If you are wondering how to teach days of the week to kids, look no further.
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Teaching the Days of the Week
ABCs, 123s, months of the year, and days of the week.
These are all foundational concepts for children.
But there is another reason to teach days of the week to young children.
As children grow, they want to know what to expect.
They thrive with consistency and transition more easily if they know the plan.
Knowing the days of the week can provide the stability and assurance to keep calm and carry on. “On Tuesday, Grandma is coming for a visit.” “We can’t go to the park today; we can go Friday.” “We will start packing for our vacation on Wednesday.”
When to Teach Days of the Week
Young children can and should learn the days of the week.
You can teach them as early as preschool-age (3 and 4-year-olds).
Learning the days of the week is a must for Kindergartners.
Regardless of whether kids learned them earlier, they should be covered (or reviewed) in a Kindergarten curriculum.
Days of the Week Activities
If you are wondering how to teach days of the week, you should include some of these activities.
Tie the days of the week to movement, song, art, and rhyme.
Songs
Songs are a perfect way to learn days of the week because they make memorizing easy!
You can also play the songs as background music while you do other activities (this is easy reinforcement).
This Days of the Week song by Singing Walrus involves singing the days of the week call-and-response style at various volumes. This Addams Family parody is a clever and catchy way to learn the days of the week.
Poems
Have you noticed that the days of the week rhyme?
Use a chant or poem to teach the days of the week.
There are classics like “Solomon Grundy” and “Monday’s Child,” but you can easily make up your own using alliteration.
Put in the name of a child, a food that starts with the letter of the day, and the day of the week.
You could also make up movements to go along with each food.
Here’s an example:
Sara ate muffins on Monday,
Sara ate tuna on Tuesday,
Sara ate waffles on Wednesday,
Sara ate Thin Mints on Thursday,
Sara ate Fritos on Friday,
Sara ate a salad on Saturday.
And Sara slept on Sunday!
Movement
Young children like to move, so channel that urge into learning.
You can chant the days of the week while you do different movements.
Here are some ones to try:
- Jumping jacks
- Toe touches
- Wall push-ups
- Claps, snaps, and stomps
- Giant arm circles
Cut and Paste
Learning days of the week means more than simply learning the names.
You need to know the days in order.
Grab this FREE cut-and-paste printable that reinforces the proper order of the days of the week.
It’s in the Freebies Library (in the Preschool section!). Get out those glue sticks!
Calendars
Get a magnetic calendar for children to maintain each day.
This one asks for today’s day of the week as well as yesterday’s and tomorrow’s.
How to Teach the Days of the Week
Days of the week are seven words that your child will encounter every day of his life.
Start teaching them early with these fun activities!
