EYFS & KS1 October Special Dates Calendar & Printables | Little Owls Resources
Looking for some age-appropriate & engaging activity ideas for October? Our free October calendar download includes key events, festivals and celebrations to help inform your nursery school, childminder, preschool or school activities and planning. Have fun! 😊
Quick Links to our October Special Date Pages | EYFS & KS1 Activity Ideas:
Mon 6th - Sun 12th - Dyslexia Awareness Week
Sun 26th - Clocks go back (UK)
CLICK HERE to visit our ‘SPECIAL DATES CALENDAR PAGE’ for an entire year of key EYFS & KS1 events, festivals & celebrations.
Overarching Themes This October | EYFS & KS1 Adventures 🍂🎃
Welcome to October! This is one of the most exciting months in the early years and primary school calendar, offering a wealth of opportunities for hands-on, cross-curricular learning. With the turn of the leaves comes a shift to themes of Autumn, Harvest, and a spotlight on diversity and community.
We’ve grouped some of the key dates and popular EYFS/KS1 topics to help you plan a truly engaging month!
📌 The Wonders of Autumn and Nature 🌰🍁
The season itself is a huge topic in October, connecting with many curriculum areas, from Understanding the World to Expressive Arts and Design.
Dates Connection:
Mon 6th - National Badger Day (UK) Focusing on woodland animals and hibernation.
Tue 21st - Apple Day A perfect celebration of a seasonal fruit.
Sun 26th - Clocks go back (UK) Introducing concepts of time and seasonal change.
Common Themes: Autumn, The Woods, Forest School, Habitats, Seasonal Change.
📌 People, Feelings, and Community ❤️🌍
October has several key dates that encourage children to look beyond themselves and think about the wider community, empathy, and different cultures.
Dates Connection:
Black History Month Celebrating Black excellence, history, and culture.
Fri 3rd - World Smile Day Discussing emotions and making others happy.
Sun 5th - Grandparents' Day Focusing on family and significant people in our lives.
Mon 6th - Sun 12th - Dyslexia Awareness Week Promoting understanding and celebrating different ways of learning.
Fri 10th - World Mental Health Day Talking about feelings and being kind to our minds.
Sun 5th - World Teachers’ Day Celebrating the people who help us learn.
Common Themes: Ourselves/All About Me, My Family, People Who Help Us, Feelings and Emotions.
📌 Harvest and Global Celebrations 🍎🍞
The beginning of the month focuses heavily on the Harvest Festival and the concept of thankfulness and sharing. Several important religious festivals also occur, offering a chance to learn about global cultures.
Dates Connection:
Harvest Festival Thankfulness, food, farming, and giving to others.
Wed 1st – Thu 2nd - Yom Kippur Learning about the Jewish day of Atonement.
Mon 6th – Mon 13th - Sukkot Learning about the Jewish Festival of Tabernacles.
Thu 16th - World Food Day Connecting to where our food comes from and healthy eating.
Fri 18th - Thu 23rd - Diwali The Hindu Festival of Lights.
Common Themes: Harvest, Food, Festivals and Celebrations.
📌 Creative Language and Spooky Fun ✍️👻
The end of October brings a focus on language arts and, of course, the excitement of Halloween!
Dates Connection:
Wed 1st - Fri 31st - The Big Draw Festival Celebrating drawing and visual literacy.
Thu 2nd - National Poetry Day (UK) Inspiring children to read, write, and perform poetry.
Sat 18th - World Singing Day Celebrating the power of music and group performance.
Fri 31st - Halloween Fun, imagination, and a little bit of spooky science.
Common Themes: Literacy, Expressive Arts, Storytelling.
Browse ALL of our October Special Date Activity Ideas Pages for EYFS & KS1:
Read our new Educational & Informative Event Blog Posts. Browse awareness dates below using the arrows and click through to our dedicated blog post pages to read more.
An apple a day! 🍏🍎 Apple Day is an annual celebration of apples and orchards, primarily observed across the UK, typically on October 21st. Initiated by the charity Common Ground in…
Scales, slither, and hiss! 🐍🦎🐢 Reptile Awareness Day is an unofficial awareness day, often observed on October 21st. It's dedicated to promoting understanding, appreciation, and…
Let's sing together! 🎤 World Singing Day is a global, non-political, non-religious, non-commercial, annual sing-along that takes place on the third Saturday in October (which in 2025…
Let's celebrate our food! 🍎🥕🍞 World Food Day is an international day celebrated annually worldwide on October 16th. It commemorates the date of the founding of the Food and Agriculture…
Wash, wash, wash your hands! 💧 Global Handwashing Day is an annual global advocacy day celebrated on October 15th. It's dedicated to increasing awareness and understanding about the…
Let's look after our minds! 🧠 World Mental Health Day is an international day dedicated to global mental health education, awareness, and advocacy against social stigma. It's observed…
Meet the badger! 🦡 National Badger Day is an annual awareness day in the UK, celebrated on October 6th. This day aims to raise awareness about badgers, their unique behaviours, their…
Hooray for our teachers! 🍎 World Teachers’ Day is a significant international day observed annually on October 5th. Established by UNESCO in 1994, in partnership with the International…
To infinity and beyond! 🚀 World Space Week is an international celebration of science and technology's contribution to the betterment of the human condition. It takes place annually from…
Let's celebrate all creatures great and small! 🐾 World Animal Day is an international day of action for animal rights and welfare, celebrated annually on October 4th. It began in 1931 at an…
Share a smile! 😊 World Smile Day is celebrated every year on the first Friday in October (which in 2025 falls on October 3rd). This special day was created by Harvey Ball, the artist who…
Let's make some rhymes! National Poetry Day is a much-loved annual celebration of poetry and all things verse in the UK. Organised by the Forward Arts Foundation, it takes place on the first…
Let's get drawing! 🎨 The Big Draw Festival is the world's biggest drawing festival and takes place annually throughout October. Run by The Big Draw, a registered charity, its aim is to…
Celebrating stories, celebrating people! Black History Month is an annual observance in the UK, Ireland, and the Netherlands every October. It's a dedicated time to celebrate the history…
October Festivals & Celebrations | Printable Resources and Activity Ideas for EYFS & KS1:
Explore our dedicated festival and celebration pages. Learn more about each event and find a wealth of resources and activity inspiration for your setting or school by clicking on the page buttons below.
Popular October Themes | Activity Inspiration & Resources for EYFS & KS1:
Whether you’re a nursery, preschool, school, childminder or parent looking for some fresh ideas, please feel free to browse our topics using the arrows on the right to scroll through the buttons below. We’ve selected some of the most popular themes for October.
Popular EVERGREEN Themes | EYFS & KS1 Inspirational Activities & Resources:
Are you looking for themes that are adored by children all-year-round? Use the arrows on the right to browse and select key themes for childminders, nurseries, preschools, year 1 and year 2.
Additional Special Date Events Calendars | EYFS & KS1 Planning Support for the Whole Year
Looking to plan further ahead? Why not check out the rest of our Monthly Special Date Events Calendars?
Let the music soar! 🎶🎭 World Opera Day is an annual worldwide celebration of opera, observed on October 25th. It was jointly established by Opera Europa, Opera America, and Ópera…