PERPETUAL CALENDAR ACTIVITIES

RESOURCE: The perpetual calendar used in these activities is adapted from The World Almanac and Book of Facts, 2003. World Almanac Books, New York, 2003, p. 648-9.

*** *** ***

LESSON GOAL: To explore the ‘ebb and flow' of the perpetual calendar.

Questions:

1. Does your 'birthdate' fall on the same ‘day of the week' year after year?
2. Does the ‘third Monday in February' [federal holiday "Washington's Birthday"] fall on the same ‘date' year after year?

*** *** ***

LESSON DEFINITIONS

‘Birthday' or ‘birth date': The day, month, and year on which you were born.

Date: 1) a specific day within a month, and/or 2) the date of an event.

‘Designated' event: A specific event such as your birthday or a federal holiday.

‘Fixed date': A designated event [like your birthday] whose ‘fixed date' will [year after year] occur on a different ‘day of the week.' ‘Fixed dates' include:

1. Your birthday
2. New Years Day [January 1]
3. Independence Day [July 4]
4. Veterans' Day [November 11]
5. Christmas Day [December 25]

(Such special days as Groundhog Day [February 2], Valentine's Day [February 14], and Halloween [October 31] are also ‘fixed dates'.

‘Fixed' day: A designated day occurring on a “previously determined or ‘fixed' day.” Such examples include the Monday federal holidays.

1. “Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr.” [third Monday in January]
2. "Washington's Birthday” [third Monday in February]
3. “Memorial Day” [last Monday in May]
4. “Labor Day” [first Monday in September]
5. “Columbus Day” [second Monday in October]
6. “Thanksgiving Day” [the fourth Thursday in November]

*** *** ***

LET'S START

OBJECTIVE 1: To find when a ‘fixed date' [such as your birthdate] occurs on the perpetual calendar.

Activity 1a: Using the chronological list of years, find the calendar representing the year of your birth.

Activity 1b: Within that calendar, find the month in which you were born.

Activity 1c: Within that month, find the day on which you were born.

*** *** ***

OBJECTIVE 2: To find what ‘day of the week' your birthday falls on the perpetual calendar year after year.

Activity 2a: What ‘day of the week' were you born on?

Activity 2b: What ‘day of the week' was your birthday on in 2005?

Activity 2c: What ‘day of the week' will your birthday be on in 10 years?

*** *** ***

OBJECTIVE 3: To find when a ‘fixed day' such as the 'third Monday in February' [“Washington's Birthday”] falls on the perpetual calendar year after year.

Activity 3a: Find the calendar of the year you were born.

Activity 3b: What ‘date' did the 'third Monday in February' occur on in the year you were born?

Activity 3c: What ‘date' does the 'third Monday in February' holiday fall on 10 years from now?

*** *** ***

OBJECTIVE 4: Create your own perpetual calendar search!

*** *** ***

To explore more about calendars try :

Calendar Dates: www.apl.org/quick/calendars.html.